Paul Nyathi
State Media reports that a member of little known People’s Democratic Party, Nqobizitha Khumalo, has revealed how he involved himself in faking abductions and causing terror in the country through trained militias since the turn of the millennium.
The media presents a long narration of acts of terrorism by Khumalo claimed to have been leaked chats on social media. In the chats that the media did not share, Khumalo is reported to have said he has experience in faking abductions and other unsavoury acts from as early as 2000 meant to attract international spotlight and condemnation on the country a serious offence in the country.
He said as one-time commander of a vigilant group known as DRC, he has first-hand experience of the modus operandi of the vigilante groups that still exist today.
“Well, I was once an area commander of the DRC. It was one of the organs put up for the final push on the Mugabe regime. While I will deny the accusation that it was a terrorist organisation, I will point out that it wasn’t a Sunday school picnic either.
“DRC was trained on how to conduct mass uprisings and we were shown videos of the Orange Spring; how to confront an armed person and how to diffuse the power of tear smoke. The possibility of providing some cannon fodder for the regime was also discussed in order to make the international community angry and garner international sympathy and the idea of provoking fire in order to create dead bodies was also discussed,” he said.
Mr Khumalo said the August 1, 2018 demonstrations were pre-planned by his group to tarnish the elections with snipers having been planted on strategic locations to spark rebellion.
“The plan was that an armed person or persons should fire at police from the crowd so the police would retaliate and massacre civilians to draw international sympathy. Which is why a cartridge was found on the fifth floor of ZCTU offices. A sniper was put there to knock off a few heads so as to provide the necessary dead bodies.”
In 2008 after March 29, Khumalo said his group had to seek refuge at the British embassy and later transferred to the American embassy.
He said they again moved to the South African embassy where we were sheltered by IOM (International Organisation for Migration) for three days before being taken to Ruwa Rehabilitation Centre where they stayed from June to September.
“We went there with high hopes. We thought our presence would incite the change we wanted but it seemed we were soon forgotten as the leadership discussed their GNU (government of national unity).”
He said he was one of the planners of operation Mbuya Varwara that involved hatching a self-abduction plot where they sneaked out of the camp in the dark and made phone calls to a sympathetic pastor who came to collect them.
“This is on record. There were nine of us. We were sheltered at a church and we all took up pseudonyms. Mine was Joao Joao. I am still missing (up to this day). Mbuya Varwara was the code name to identify the plot on the phone.
“One of the planners is now in the information department of the Transform Zimbabwe party. The whole thing was planned. The whole camp was in uproar. Please check your archives. The din attracted the attention of the United Nations High Commissioner for refugees. In the meantime, we were carried to a plot in the Mount Hampden area where we were hidden just near the Air Force radar guarded by Air Force guards. I could give the name of the woman farmer but I don’t think it is proper to do so. What I am saying is verifiable,” he said.