ZIMBABWE’S defeated ex-prime minister has returned to the
country as politicians eye opportunities for power while President Robert
Mugabe is under house arrest.
Morgan Tsvangirai, the opposition leader who was made Mr
Mugabe’s deputy between 2009 and 2013 after he saw a surge in support in
elections, was on the same plane into Harare as Sky News.
Sky correspondent David Bowden reported that also on the
plane were two other government ministers, who were returning to their country
from Russia.
It came after the army seized power in the country in what
the leader of the African Union said looked like a “coup”.
Mr Mugabe is being detained in the presidential palace,
where explosions and gunshots were heard early on Wednesday.
The army said it was holding the president and his wife
Grace, but there have also been rumours she had fled to Namibia.
Bowden said: “People are gathering here to see how this
plays out and what they can grab from the spoils.”
He added: “As we left the airport there were heavily armed
soldiers on checkpoints, checking every vehicle in, and every vehicle out.
“As we moved through the streets driven by a local activist
we came upon an armoured personnel carrier full of soldiers who quickly raced
out and chased us round the corner as soon as they realised we were filming
them.
“We were convinced they might open fire – but they didn’t.
It gives you an idea of the tension on the streets here… but it’s a tension
laced with expectation.
“People seem to think that something concrete is going to
happen. They don’t know what it is but they do know that once it plays out
Zimbabwe will not be the same as it has been for the last 37 years.”
Earlier, African Union leader Alpha Conde, said: “The
African Union expresses its serious concern regarding the situation unfolding
in Zimbabwe.”
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