Mafume was last week denied bail following his second
arrest on accusations that he tried to bribe a state witness in his criminal
case.
The mayor was initially arrested on November 25 for
allegedly parcelling out land to his sister and an employee. He was denied bail
by the magistrates court only to be released two weeks later by the High Court.
Chamisa’s spokesperson Nkululeko Sibanda said Mafume’s
“persecution” was part of a wider plan to weaken the mainstream opposition.
“It is absolutely clear that the regime is carrying out
rule by law,” Sibanda told The Standard. “They are turning the law around and
weaponising it so that they can destroy all the functions of the MDC Alliance.
“The arrest of the mayor marks the beginning of a long
battle that Zanu PF has put forward. “We are aware that this is going to
happen, but no amount of illegality will stop the movement of the people and
our progression towards democracy.”
Sibanda claimed Mafume was arrested for trying to stop the
demolition of 190 houses in Budiriro high-density suburb.
The houses belonged to members of a housing cooperative
aligned to Zanu PF, which illegally occupied council land.
“The land barons that he stood against are now running
through a process so that the mayor is removed and Zanu PF can then do what it
wants,” Sibanda said.
“This is all about the mayor’s fight against corruption and
abuse of office and authority by Zanu PF officials, who have from time
immemorial been getting land illegally. “There are a lot of Zanu PF stalwarts
with huge tracts of land and you ask yourself where did they get it from?”
Tafadzwa Mugwadi, the Zanu PF director of information, said
the ruling party had nothing to do with Mafume’s arrest. “Zanu PF is not the Zimbabwe Republic
Police,” Mugwadi said.
“Secondly, there are top officials in the MDC that are
known and Jacob Mafume is not such. “He, therefore, should face his corruption
cases head-on and avoid creating unnecessary side shows.” Standard
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