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Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has said it will deal with all cases of politically motivated violence regardless of perpetrators’ political affiliation.

Speaking at an event organised by the Zimbabwe Peace Project titled “Dialogue with Political Parties – Making blocks for Peace Work: Zimbabwe Elections 2018”, police commander for the 2018 harmonised elections committee Senior Assistant Commissioner Erasmus Makodza said no one was immune to prosecution.

“For these harmonised elections, the ZRP will make sure that it is not going to spare anyone who is going to be involved in political violence,” he said.

“Yes, I have heard you talking about the past. The past is past.

“We received some phone calls simply because some people thought they were immune to arrest and they started calling my office.

“They would say: ‘Your officers are here, they are arresting me’ and I said what have you done? ‘They are alleging that I have assaulted so and so’. I said to that political candidate give that police officer your cellphone. When the police officer came on the phone I instructed him to arrest him.”

Snr Asst Comm Makodza said that was the stance adopted by the force and it was not going back on it.

“We are not making threats,” he said. “I think those of you following the statistics know that we have arrested everyone involved in political violence regardless of their political affiliation.”

Snr Asst Comm Makodza challenged citizens with outstanding cases to bring them forward, saying the police, “had enough handcuffs”.

He said he had personally engaged the national director of public prosecutions and requested him to appoint seasoned senior prosecutors, saying on their part, police had appointed seasoned and experienced detectives to be involved in the investigations of the cases.

“I also made an appeal to the chief magistrate to ensure that we get seasoned and experienced magistrates to handle these cases,” he said.

“The Judiciary has set up special courts to deal with politically motivated cases and so far so good.

“I want to assure you and the nation that we are not going to spare anyone involved in political violence and we mean it. We are very serious about it.

“We mean business, we are not going to allow our people to suffer because of criminals.”

Snr Asst Comm Makodza said the police’s function in the elections would be guided by the Constitution and police officers who fail to deal with such cases would be brought before tribunals.

Responding to claims by some participants that Zanu-PF activists involved in politically motivated violence were being spared by police, Zanu-PF Secretary for Legal Affairs Cde Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana said ZRP was not part of Zanu-PF and the party did not control the police.

“We are a political player, a political party and ZRP is not part of us and we are not part of ZRP,” he said.

“If members of our political party commit political violence they must be arrested. As the secretary for legal affairs, I am the one responsible for defending Zanu-PF on legal matters.

“My instructions to lawyers representing the party is that we do not represent political players who are charged with violence.

“This is the instruction we got from the head of our party and the President of the country.

“He said if any of our members are responsible for any political violence, the victims must call the police and they should be arrested, adding that Zanu-PF will not protect them as a party.

“Our leader said we must have free and fair elections. We must cooperate as all political parties. Let us work together and build the Zimbabwe that we want.”

Zimbabwe Peace Project national director Ms Jestina Mukoko commended the police for their stance on political violence.

“I am very much aware of the issue of the police,” she said.

“When I first met Senior Assistant Commissioner Makodza, I told him that I was surprised when I was called an esteemed guest at his office.

“I was not used to it. I kept looking, thinking there was someone behind me, little did I know they were referring to me.

“In the old days, even a letter was not responded to, even one in which we are requesting a meeting.”