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a pressure group -cum political party calling for the separation of Matabeleland from the rest of the country, which opened yesterday, said they were seeing the three accused persons for the first time.
Messrs Edwin Sibanda and Sibangani Ndlovu told senior Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nicholas Ndou sitting with Messrs Phanuel Damba and Elliot Nyoni as assessors that they were seeing Charles Thomas, John Gazi and Paul Siwela for the first time yesterday.
It was their evidence that although they saw the fliers they did not see the people who were distributing them.
Mr Sibanda, who stays in Lobengula, said on 3 March last year, he was on his way to Tenga Shopping Centre where he wanted to braai some meat when he met a man who was holding a bunch of papers.
It was his evidence that after the man had walked past him and was about 15 metres away he saw a green paper on the ground and picked it.
“I looked at the small paper and saw the words Mthwakazi kaNdaba and it also had a map but just because I was not interested, I threw it away,” he testified.
Mr Sibanda, who said he is the chairperson of Entumbane Flea Market, said he could not say whether the man who had walked past him was the one who had thrown the small paper that he picked.
It was his evidence that two men who identified themselves as police officers came to Entumbane Flea Market and told him that there were some people who had come to the place and distributed some Mthwakazi fliers.
“I told them that I was not present when the incident occurred and mentioned that I had picked one up on my way to braai some meat,” he said.
Mr Sibanda said despite having told the two officers, one of whom he said was Mr Mpofu, he was surprised that they took down his name even though he had not witnessed the incident.
Mr Ndlovu said he was seated in his stall at the flea market when he saw some papers being thrown inside the stalls by a group of people.
“I picked the paper thinking it could be informing me of a rent increase or a sale somewhere although I did not take note of the faces of the people who were distributing the papers.
“I was surprised after two days when two police officers confronted me and told me that I had read a Mthwakazi flier. I told them that I saw the paper, read it and threw it away because it had nothing to do with me,” he testified.
It was his evidence that although only one flier was thrown into his stall, the fliers were scattered all over the area stretching from Njube to Entumbane suburb.
He drew laughter from the public gallery that was packed when he said he was surprised why he had been brought to court adding that his “sin” was reading the paper.
Under cross-examination by Advocate Lucas Nkomo for Thomas and Siwela and Advocate Sabelo Sibanda for Gazi, Mr Ndlovu said he was first made to sign a statement while at Entumbane Flea Market and that he was again made to sign another one before a representative of the Attorney General’s Office at Tredgold Building.
He said he never had a statement recorded at a police station and when put under pressure about the fact that the affidavit, which was produced in court showed that he signed it on 27 May 2011 but the date stamp on the affidavit and from the officer-in-charge Law and Order Section read 26 May 2011, Mr Ndlovu, who said he was not that much educated, said as far as he was concerned the two statements that he signed contained the same information that he gave to the police.
The trial continues today with Messrs Lovack Masuku and Samuel Pedzisai, both from the Attorney General’s Office, leading evidence from witnesses who are police officers.
Thomas (44), Gazi (54) and Siwela (50) pleaded not guilty to the main charge of treason and the alternative charge of subverting constitutionally elected Government.
Thomas and Siwela’s defence as presented by Adv Nkomo instructed by Mr Sindiso Shepherd Mazibisa and Mr Robert Ndlovu is that they never at anytime from 1 March to 3 March 2011 acted in common purpose and conspired with any person to incite people of Zimbabwe or a section of them to rise against the Government by distributing fliers, which contained messages calling on members of the public and the army to rise against the Government of Zimbabwe.
Gazi, through Adv Sibanda, states that at the time of the alleged offence, prior to his resignation from the MLF he was secretary-general.
He denies hatching a plan to distribute any fliers and conspire to incite members of the public or anyone else to rise up against or seek to overthrow a constitutionally elected Government of Zimbabwe through unconstitutional means.
On 1 March last year, the trio in the company of seven others, who are still at large, held an executive meeting at Siwela’s office at Number 3 Princess Court.
The State is alleging that at the meeting, they connived and agreed to distribute fliers of which among others had the following messages: “Vuka Mthwakazi vuka, ayishe Mahlabezulu, washa mfethu and abantu yithi.”
It is the State case that Thomas was mandated to distribute the fliers.
On 3 March, the State alleges that Thomas went to Entumbane shopping complex where he was arrested while allegedly distributing the fliers and some calendars.
The fliers were addressed to different groups in society like churches, non-governmental organisations, civil servants and political parties.
Online Reporter