Staff Reporter | Villagers from Matobo District in Matabeleland South are terrified after their village heads were ordered to compile registers of all people in their areas and submit them to ZANU PF officials working with members of the notorious Central Intelligence Organisation.

Speaking to ZimEye.com last night the villagers claim that their traditional leaders told them over the weekend, that they had been ordered to submit their names in a register that will be used to target anyone who will not attend President Robert Mugabe’s birthday celebrations at Rhodes Estate Preparatory School in the district.

The villagers further claim that the ZANU PF officials confiscated records of villagers from headmen that included drought relief food registers and dip tank registers to confirm the names of people in the villages with the registers for the birthday celebrations.

A ZANU PF official in Ward 18 of Matobo North who would not have his name mentioned said that the registers were being compiled so as to come up with the precise number of guests to be fed at the celebrations and not to be used to victimise the people in any way.

The villagers claim to be in a panic mode telling their children and relatives who are in the Headmen’s registers but living out of the villages in the cities and even South Africa to rush back home and be present at the birthday celebrations when the registers are checked.

It is norm in the rural communities that people include names of their relatives and children in the headman’s register even if they are not full time resident in the villages.

A headman in Natisa Village who spoke to ZimEye.com said that they have been given specific instruction that they must make sure that everyone in their registers makes it to the President’s birthday celebrations on Saturday. He said they have not been warned or told of any course of action that will be taken against people who will not attend the fiery bash.

Since the preparations for the bash started there had been an usual high presence of state security personnel that include the police, the army and the CIO which villagers claim to be very intimidatory.