Own Correspondent|Marry Chiwenga, wife of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga — is at the Harare Magistrates Court today on allegations of externalising US$1 million and fraudulently seeking to solemnise her marriage with neither the husband’s knowledge nor consent.
Mrs Chiwenga was on Saturday evening arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) for externalising foreign currency, money laundering and the fraud case regarding the marriage.
She was locked up at Rhodesville Police Station pending her court appearance today. Her husband literally declared her arrest and imprisonment just days before she was arrested.
Addressing delegates at the 18th Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference at Goromonzi High School last week, VP Chiwenga spoke unequivocally against corruption.
He urged the nation to walk the talk on corruption, saying all corrupt persons should be jailed.
“We need to be true patriots and loyal servants by shunning, resisting and exposing corruption, as well as ethically playing our expected roles in national development,” said VP Chiwenga.
“Nyaya yecorruption munopinda mujere. Iyi haina anokwanisa kuti ini handikwanisike nokuti ndakamira ndakadai. Saka tobva pano paGoromonzi tapinda mugwara.
“Usambofa wakati ini ndakashandira musangano. Wakashandira musangano, but teedzera gwara. Hatichadi kuona nyaya dzecorruption. Dzinofanira kuti dzipere (When it comes to corruption, there are no sacred cows. It must come to an end).”
Chiwenga and his ex model wife Marry are om the brink of a divorce after they had a nasty fallout when he was seriously ill and hospitalised in South Africa.
Family members and government officials say the fallout revolved around personal matters related to Marry’s behaviour and her attempt to have Chiwenga write a will, in which she would have been the largest beneficiary of the couple’s vast estate in the event that he dies.
At the time, most members of Chiwenga’s family, as well as government officials, had ruled out the general’s hopes of recovery. Senior Zanu PF officials had also begun jostling for his post, while others pushed for him to be dropped from government on the grounds that he was incapacitated.
Chiwenga and Marry have been living separately after the Vice-President moved into another house on arrival from China, where he was hospitalised for four months, before staging a remarkable recovery.