By Paul Nyathi | The Retired Defence Forces Commander Constantino Chiwenga made the clearest hint that the late General Josiah Magama Tongogara (President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s brother in law) was assassinated in cold blood.

His testimony sharply contradicts that of the late General’s female aide, Oppah Muchinguri as well as the former president Robert Mugabe the two who claim that it was a real accident that ended his life.

Muchinguri has for years maintained her account which says Gen Tongo died in an accident. She says she confidently asserts “the truth” because she was there with him in the same car on the trip to Mozambique in December 1979.

But Chiwenga speaking today blew up the very opposite, pointing to those he claims were “enemies,” linking them his demise. Chiwenga said Gen Tongo knew in advance that he had enemies who would make sure that he never made it into an independent Zimbabwe.

The revelations are coming at a time when the late Gen Tongogara’s “mukwasha” brother in law, Emmerson Mnangagwa has taken over power as President. ZimEye can reveal President Mnangagwa’s first wife, Varaidzo was Gen Tongogara’s direct sibling.

The ruling ZANU PF Second Secretary and Vice President said this addressing scores of friends and relatives who attended a memorial service held at the National Heroes Acre in Harare on Boxing day.

“General Tongogara opened to us that he was likely not going to make it to an independent Zimbabwe as he was unpopular with some people in the struggle and he indeed died on the even of our independence,” he said.

The Tongogara family holds annual commemorations at the National Heroes Acre to remember the commander of the ZANLA forces during the liberation war who wad killed in a mysterious road accident on Christmas eve in 1979 as he made his way into Zimbabwe from Zambia to finalise the end of the liberation war to create and independent Zimbabwe.

Since his death, speculation has been rife in the country that the gallant commander may have been murdered.

Chiwenga is the first among the ZANU PF top leaders to openly hint that Tongogara may have been murdered and foresaw and spoke about his imminent death way ahead of time.

Members of the Tongogara family and scores of other ZANU PF members and other associates braved heavy rains that pondered the capital city to attend the memorial service. – ZimEye