When contacted for comment by VOA, MDC dismissed the Motlanthe Commission report’s findings that it instigated the violence.
The Motlanthe Commissiob report says the MDC led by Nelson Chamisa sparked the violence, that resulted in the August 1 incident and involvement of the army and the police. Part of the report reads:
Speeches made by political leaders, mostly the MDC Alliance, before and after the elections, heightened tensions and played a part in inciting some members of the public to protest,” noted the report. “During the pre-election rallies, the MDC Alliance had taken a position that if their presidential candidate, Nelson Chamisa, did not win the election, they would protest. A threat that they implemented.
However MDC spokesperson Jacob Mafume said the report fails to name one person shot by the party nor does it mention members of the party who took part in the protests. Mafume said his party is still going through the report.Said Mafume:
We are surprised that the report says we caused the violence, but they didn’t name even one person shot by the MDC, they haven’t even mentioned one member of the MDC who was even there, they are only referring to speeches that were made at rallies.
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