Zimbabwe minister arrested over phone theft

HARARE, Wednesday

A minister from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s party has been arrested for allegedly stealing a mobile phone from a militant supporter of President Robert Mugabe as tension continues to build up in Zimbabwe’s shaky coalition government.

Deputy Youth Minister, Mr Thamsanqa Mahlangu was arrested on Tuesday over the theft of the phone belonging to war veterans’ leader, Mr Joseph Chinotimba at a conference a fortnight ago.

Mr Mhlanga shared a table with Mr Chinotimba at a July 17 workshop convened by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara to craft a “shared national vision.”

Police say during a lunch break, the war veterans leader who spearheaded Zimbabwe’s land invasions with Mr Mugabe’s tacit approval, left his food on the table when he stood up to get some food.

When he returned the phone had vanished.

Detectives, with the help of a network provider reportedly tracked down the sim card to a woman who claimed to Mr Mahlangu’s girlfriend.

“His arrest is in connection with theft of a cell phone at a function that was held at the Harare International Conference Center,” police spokesman, Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena said.

“Two other people are facing charges relating to the use of the cell phone line without the consent of the owner and in breach of the Telecommunications Act.”

But Mr Mahlangu’s party said the arrest was part of a wider plot by Mr Mugabe’s Zanu PF party to whittle down its majority and victimise its leadership.

“His arrest comes in the wake of renewed persecution of MDC MPs and ministers,” the MDC said in a statement. “At least seven MPs are facing trumped up charges while the party’s secretary general and Minister of Finance Tendai Biti on Monday received an envelope with a bullet inside.”

The main MDC is one seat away from losing its majority in parliament, a year after it overturned Zanu PF’s dominance for the first time since independence.

At least five MDC MPs have been convicted for instigating violence during last year’s elections.

The arrests intensified after Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai formed a unity government in February.

At least 16 other MPs have cases pending before the courts and according to Zimbabwe’s constitution if they are given jail sentences exceeding six months they will lose their seats.

No Zanu PF MP has been convicted despite the fact that several were implicated in the violence that swept the country ahead of the disputed of last year’s June 27 presidential run-off election.

A number of Zanu PF MPs were also fingered in the abuse of a government agriculture input scheme but none have been convicted.

Dr Lovemore Madhuku, a constitutional expert said the clampdown on the MDC MPs threatened the stability of the coalition.

“It is very clear that there is a selective application of the law,”

Dr Madhuku said. “There are more crimes committed by Zanu PF MPs than those of the MDC-T.

“It is an open secret that some Zanu PF MPs were behind last year’s political violence but no one has been convicted.”

Mr Tsvangirai’s party won 99 seats in the 210 house of assembly during last year’s harmonised elections.

The party had won four more seats than Zanu PF