Sithole was arrested on June 14 in connection with the
violence that took place in Nyatsime at the funeral of slain CCC activist
Moreblessing Ali.
He was charged with incitement to public violence alongside
fellow MP Job Sikhala and 14 other Nyatsime residents.
Sikhala and Nyatsime residents are still in remand prison
despite several attempts to apply for bail.
In an interview with The Standard, Sithole said he came
face to face with ‘horror’ on his first night at Harare central prison where he
had to sleep in a pest-infested prison cell.
He said they were classified as political prisoners.
“In our case, we
were mostly ill-treated. Our visitors were turned away, we were denied access
to medical practitioners and even our lawyers were most of the time not allowed
to visit us,” an emotional Sithole said.
“The cells are very dirty, lice-infested and smell of
urine.” He suffered cold nights while in
detention at Harare Central Prison.
“It was at the peak of the winter season,” Sithole said.
“There were no blankets and there was no food. We spent two
nights there before we were then transferred to Chikurubi Maximum Security
Prison.”
At Chikurubi, the situation was no different with officials
at the prison allegedly being hostile to Sithole and Sikhala.
The duo — used to spending time at work and with their
families — had to endure several cold nights detained in solitary confinement.
“I and Sikhala were
detained in solitary confinement. We had to sleep at 3 in the afternoon,”
Sithole said.
“We had 17 hours of sleep and the conditions are not good,
they are very bad. If you see that the conditions of the whole country
generally are very bad, just imagine what it means for Chikurubi, it’s bound to
be worse.
“The food is
pathetic, prisoners get food which is not nutritious, the vegetables that we
were given had no cooking oil, no salt and other basic ingredients that ensure
people have a healthy and balanced diet.”
Every night, the politician also feared for his life due to
poor medical facilities and disaster preparedness.
Sithole claimed the prison is overpopulated and at high
risk for disease outbreaks.
“At Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison, they do not have
enough blankets, it’s a crisis and people are just congested,” he said.
“You can have 40
people in a cell designed for 15 people at Chikurubi; their disaster
preparedness programme is in shambles.
“As you are aware,
last year a prominent prisoner Martin Gumbura died of Covid-19 at Chikurubi.”
Only last week, according to Sithole, there was a Shigella
outbreak at the prison.
Sihigella, according
to medical journals, is caused by eating food prepared by someone with a
Shigella infection and drinking and eating contaminated water and food.
While it is normally
treatable, people with underlying conditions may be at risk. Symptoms include
diarrhoea (sometimes bloody), fever, and stomach cramps.
Sithole also said
Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison was not designed to accommodate people living
with disabilities, making life hell for some inmates.
“I believe that
those who are in remand prison whom I cannot name are not supposed to be there,
I don’t believe they committed any crime,” Sithole said. Standard
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