Rest Chiduku, the son of self-appointed King Munhumutapa, born Timothy Chiminya, was arrested in Bulawayo on Thursday for allegedly posing as a government official and commissioner. He had been visiting shops and bars to check their licenses.
According to Southern Eye, Chiduku’s appointment had resulted in the dismissal of Mandla Nkomo, the Bulawayo commissioner, and his spokesperson, Chief Bekezela Bhekimpi Nyathi, who was let go after challenging Chiduku’s authority.
Chiduku’s arrest came after police received a tip-off about a “suspicious character” claiming to work for the government.
Images of Chiduku in handcuffs were subsequently shared on the ZANU PF Youth League’s Facebook page. Reads the post:
Beware of criminals moving around claiming to be government officials. Here is the one who claims to be a commissioner, he goes around checking licences in shops and bars.
Nkomo, a former commissioner for Chief Munhumutapa, said they worked hard to build support for the monarch. Said Nkomo:
To our surprise, King Munhumutapa imposed his son Chiduku to run the Matabeleland region, including us.
That was totally wrong because we worked very hard building this dynasty in the Matabeleland region with Nyathi, a spiritually filled person and a humble leader who is filled with respect.
When Chiminya saw that the (WhatsApp) chat group I opened had a higher number (of members) than other provinces sitting at 650, he thought he had the power to impose his son.
We tried to advise him to stop it because that was wrong and tribalistic. He was very angry with me and Nyathi to the point of firing us.
Nyathi advised King Munhumutapa not to fire me, but the king opted to send an audio endorsing Chiduku cementing that he is his biological son and people of Bulawayo and Matabeleland must listen to him nothing else.
We left Chiminya and his son Chiduku, who had been just arrested because of going around conning people and collecting moneys from shop owners and business people in Zimbabwe in the name of his father, King Munhumutapa.
Chiminya on Friday confirmed the arrest of Chiduku but said his arrest had nothing to do with him as a king. He said:
What caused his arrest has nothing to do with Munhumutapa. It’s his own issue and the law has to be applied to him. If he is guilty, he should be proven guilty by the courts.
Chiminya also said that Nyathi was his spokesperson and Nkomo was the only commissioner he appointed.
He said Nkomo had appointed Chiduku as his secretary, and he simply implemented Nkomo’s decisions.
Chiminya claimed that both Nkomo and Nyathi resigned for their own reasons, which he respected, leading to Chiduku remaining in his position in Bulawayo.
The self-proclaimed Munhumutapa criticized Chiduku for allegedly acting as a government official and taking money from shops and said if Chiduku violated the law, legal consequences should follow.
Chiminya revealed that Chiduku was in the department of Forever Associate Zimbabwe (FAZ), a Central Intelligence Organisation-linked shadow group that campaigned for President Emmerson Mnangagwa ahead of the 2023 elections.
More: Pindula News