Senator Lilian Timveos, Senator Douglas Mwonzora and MDC President, Advocate Nelson Chamisa…..
By Lionel Saungweme| Zvishavane Senator, Hon Lilian Timveos handed over a Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance camera to MDC Alliance President, Nelson Chamisa at the party headquarters in Harare yesterday. The CCTV was bought by a team led by the interim United Kingdom MDC Chairman, Chrispen Chamburuka, after holding a successful fundraising dinner in the UK on 16 March.
Dubbed “The MDC Business Dinner 2019,” party members including MDCA President, Nelson Chamisa’s spokesperson, Dr Nkululeko Sibanda and gender rights activist Betty Makoni, among many other luminaries, met at Double Tree Hilton Hotel in Coventry to hear their guest Senator Lilian Timveos speak at the fundraising dinner.
More than 60 guests attended the £50 per head fundraising dinner, which netted more than £2000. Organisers also collected £I220 or USD$1584 from the sale of Morgan Tsvangirai’s biography At the Deep End and Elliot Pfebve’s Zimbabwe My Home My Frustration: Articles of Defiance, which was published in 2012.
“This money will be used to paint Harvest House, which we renamed Morgan Tsvangirai House after the death of MDC founding president on 14 February 2018. However, more is needed because the damage was too much,” said Senator Timveos.
The purchase is an initiative by Senator Timveos and party supporters in the UK led by the MDCA ambassador for UK and Ireland, Elliot Pfebve.
“They felt that … Harvest House would not have been burnt if we had the CCTV camera to see the thugs. We could have solved the issue faster,” said Senator Timveos.
Speaking at the handover ceremony held at Morgan Tsvangirai House yesterday Advocate Chamisa implored MDC Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora, to “… write a letter to the UK structures to appreciate the good work that was done.”
“This is really good work. We thank God for the kindness,” continued Advocate Chamisa.
The idea of acquiring a CCTV is a response to the “petrol-bombing” of Morgan Tsvangirai House by suspected Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) members on the night of 14 January 2019.
On that day, the front part of the MDC Alliance offices in Harare were burnt by men in balaclava in what seemed like Government’s response to a peaceful stayaway called by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions to protest the steep fuel price hike.
A few days after the arson attack on Morgan Tsvangirai House, the Zanu PF government shut down the internet, allowed the army to shoot dead innocent civilians, unleashed the anti-riot police, brutalised the people including children in the townships and arrested over a thousand adults and minors nationwide on false charges of looting.
State media misinformed its audiences by saying that the looting was inspired by the MDC despite the fact that all opposition leaders arrested over charges of looting were acquitted by the courts of law.
“I am excited and happy. Morgan Tsvangirai House will be protected. If those Zanu PF thugs come again the CCTV will capture them. We thank our supporters for organising the fundraising dinner,” said Senator Lilian Timveos who was guest speaker.