Linda Tsungirirai Masarira who leads the opposition Labour, Economists and African Democrats (LEAD) party has called for the release of 16 Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) members who were arrested in June over the 14 June 2022 violence which erupted in Nyatsime.
Among the arrested are Members of Parliament (MPs) Job Sikhala (Zengeza West) and Godfrey Sithole (Chitungwiza North).
They have been in prison since June with courts denying them bail on several occasions.
Reflecting on her past, Masarira said she was once arrested during the time of the late founding leader of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe and she reckons the system under which she suffered hasn’t changed despite the fact that it’s about five years since Mugabe’s departure.
Mugabe’s predecessor, President Emmerson Mnangagwa, is being accused of presiding over a system that violates human rights. Masarira said in a Twitter post seen by Pindula News:
6years ago I faced political persecution under Mugabes regime. Fast forward 2022 people are still being persecuted for differing political opinions & being denied bail which is a fundamental human right. If murderers & corrupt elements are being granted bail why not #Nyatsime16
Her remarks echo those of the opposition CCC which argues that its members are being arrested for political reasons.
Government critics argue that the arrests are meant to intimidate and destabilise the opposition ahead of the 2023 harmonised elections.
Sikhala is one of the most vocal senior leaders in CCC.
While the CCC activists are being detained for a prolonged period of time, several political elites accused of stealing millions of dollars from the state are being released from jail and in some cases, their charges dropped, much to the annoyance of the opposition.
Only recently, ZANU PF MP for Gokwe-Nembudziya Justice Mayor Wadyajena who was accused of defrauding Cottco of about US$5.8 million was granted bail.