Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, George Charamba yesterday launched a scathing attack on MDC President Nelson Chamisa threatening that he will be arrested should the Commission of Inquiry into the 1st of August violence nail him as one of the people responsible.
In an interview with The Herald, Charamba said Chamisa must appear before the Kgalema Motlante led commission and give his side of the story.
“We want to establish the facts and soon after the facts have been established, prosecutorial action will be taken because we have lost lives. But more critically, we will have more elections for as long as this country lives as a democratic proposition. If we don’t send a clear signal that you don’t dabble in violence and trivialise life, it will mean that this thing will continue haunting us. It’s a very serious matter.”
Mr Charamba continued: “Yes, it’s about lives that have been lost, but more critically, it’s about lives that are still endangered by future elections. The Vanguard is mentioned in the Commission. There is a counter narrative to say we have disbanded it, meanwhile Chamisa is certificating them for their superb violence which draws fatalities.
“Who takes him seriously and is that responsible leadership? He is personally liable and he is also vicariously liable and the best favour he can do to himself is to go and put his own side of the story before the Commission. He should not think that he can throw people on the streets so as to abort processes.
“It’s not going to happen. If he thinks that his response to a subpoena is by throwing his demos in the street, then he is in for a very rude shock. He must be brought to account. There will come a time when we go beyond that to say for how long do we tolerate an argument which says the voter made a mistake to give us a certain electoral outcome when in fact what will decide the electoral day is violence in the street.
“Essentially, that is what he is saying, to say ‘your voting is useless, I have my own ways which is above the ballot and which is above the people’. And if he thinks there is an irresponsible parent who throws jiggies to a child who is burning the village, sorry hake,” said Charamba.