Gift Mashoko

Chinhoyi Magistrate, Felix Mawadzo sentenced MDC Chinhoyi District Assembly members Clifford Maleka and Darlington Machemba to 36 months in prison for public violence and malicious damage to property.

Their judgement was made during a court hearing at the Chinhoyi magistrate court on 19 March 2019.

The State was represented by Mashonaland West Area Prosecutor, Herald Matura.

Circumstances are that during the stay way, the two assaulted people who had reported for work on one of the days, burning tyres, destroying and looting some shops in Kadoma.

MDC and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Union (ZCTU) instigated this violence which left six people dead and a trail of destruction in Harare, Bulawayo and other cities. Employees of the affected shops such as till operators, security guards and merchandisers among others, lost their jobs during the violent protests.

There were also physical damages to most Government institutions during the violent demonstrations in most parts of the country. A number of police stations, tollgates, police vehicles, a Zupco bus and a truck that was full of medical drugs worth US $143 000 were burnt beyond repair. This affected most businesses as most of the institutions were forced to close.

President Mnangagwa is on record saying that people have the right to protest but they must protest peacefully.

Since its inception in 1999, MDC has always been fronting the regime change agenda in Zimbabwe, causing several political conflicts that have hampered the social-political-economic development of the country.