STATE SECURITY minister Kembo Mohadi on Saturday said Zanu
PF had dumped President Robert Mugabe for surrounding himself with
“anti-revolutionaries and criminals”.
He said the military intervention was meant to neutralise
Mugabe’s grip on power and rid government of the “dirty” elements.
Mohadi was speaking to village leadership gathered for an
environmental impact assessment meeting of the Beitbridge Colliery at Tshituripasi
in his Beitbridge East constituency.
“We are no longer with him. We parted ways with him
(Mugabe). I don’t know if you have heard what is happening in Harare, but we
are not with him anymore. Initially, the army wanted to remove dirty people around
Mugabe, but he was stubborn,” Mohadi, who was part of the negotiating team for
Mugabe’s exit talks facilitated by Sadc and South African President Jacob
Zuma’s envoys, said.
“Everyone was subjected to the military scrutiny and I was
vetted by the army when I returned from Mozambique. They sat me down at the
airport while they checked my background before clearing me. We must let them
(army) do their work.”
Mohadi heads the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO),
which is widely believed to be at the core of Mugabe’s security team.
His comments came amid reports that all CIO operatives had
been ordered to co-operate with the military and surrender official vehicles to
their respective stations until the army’s operation was over.
The Zimbabwe Defence Forces, led by General Constantino
Chiwenga, last week led a well-coordinated military intervention which is
pushing Mugabe to step down after 37 years of interrupted rule.
“It is not correct to say they (military) staged a coup
because Mugabe continued his role as President,” Mohadi said, adding that he
once jointly owned a Beitbridge coal claim with Mugabe.
He said the special grant to exploit coalfields at
Tshatapita village, 100 kilometres east Beitbridge, was once given to Kemro
(Kembo and Robert), a company owned by him and Mugabe, but was separated by an
unnamed Mines minister.
“A new Pharaoh who did not know Moses came and separated
the grant, leaving me with 40 000 hectares which we are starting to exploit,”
he told villagers keen to know their benefits.
Mohadi, who earlier toured the mine and an area for the
proposed new border post, said revenue from the mine would be used to build a
new border post and bridge between South Africa and Zimbabwe.
“We have agreed with our South African colleagues who are
also building another town on their side. Many jobs will be created and the
development is yours.
“This is much of legacy, my legacy. I don’t need money
anymore, I am old and want to leave a name.”
An official at Beitbridge Colliery, Rodwell Kamuriwo, said
the mine would create 5 000 direct and 5 000 downstream jobs.
Kamuriwo said coal exports will be through South Africa,
adding the projected output was 300 000 tonnes per month with each tonne
generating at least $165.
“We will build Kembo Mohadi City, a border post and a
bridge with the same name and we are starting to clear the ground for Kembo
Mohadi Regional Airport. Before we build the bridge, we will take coal across
through a conveyor belt to be built across the Limpopo River.”
He added that Beitbridge Colliery will also build a highway
alongside Limpopo River to Beitbridge town.
The acting mine manager at the plant, Bothwell Ndou, said
they were eight metres away from the coal bench and the quality of the coal was
good.
“It’s here, we are on it and we are ready to roll,” Ndou
said. newsday
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