Police dragnet was closing in on ex-Harare chairman Midzi

Harare Bureau—
FORMER Zanu-PF Harare provincial chairman and Cabinet Minister Cde Amos Midzi, who was recently found dead in his car at his farm in Beatrice, was under police investigation on several allegations of abuse of office while he was still the party’s provincial leader. Police sources yesterday said Cde Midzi was being probed for allegedly demanding money using the party’s name from several housing cooperatives in and around Harare.

The sources also said Cde Midzi had lots of debts after he allegedly took several loans from various banks in the city.

“Investigations had been opened up since there were allegations that he demanded money from various housing cooperatives in Harare,” said the sources.

“He was also facing financial constraints and had a lot of debts after he took money from various banks in the city.”

The source said police were also probing Cde Midzi as the alleged brains behind commuter bus rank touts popularly known as “mandimbandimba”, who had for the past few years been demanding money from kombi crews.

This was after it emerged that the Harare City Council and kombi operators were losing millions in potential revenue to the touts who claimed to be linked to senior party officials in the province.

The revelations that Cde Midzi may have been involved in extorting money from housing co-operatives follow the recent arrest of Zanu-PF provincial youth chairperson for Harare, Godwin Gomwe on similar allegations.

Gomwe, together with six other provincial party members, are out on bail for allegedly extorting more than $46,000 from housing co-operatives using the First Lady Cde Grace Mugabe’s name.

The touts that Cde Midzi was allegedly involved with had developed a well planned and sustained method to instil fear in commuter bus operators and had in the process become rich overnight after employing runners who collected the cash on their behalf.

The “mandimbandimba”, who operated in a “mafia” style, reportedly collected over $1,000 daily.

A kombi which carries 18 passengers paid $1 to the touts, while a 75-seater forked out $6 per trip.

Harare has over 10 commuter bus ranks that were reportedly under the control of different touts, who at times used their “runners” to threaten defiant kombi crews.

Last week police were winding up investigations into the death of Cde Midzi and the matter was being handled by detectives from the CID Law and Order Section based at Marondera Police Station.

Cde Midzi’s farm where he died in Beatrice, is in Mashonaland East province whose capital is Marondera.

A post-mortem conducted on his body revealed that he died of poisoning and the case was then treated like any sudden death.

The post-mortem was carried out by a team of three doctors who concluded that the death was due to marked pulmonary oedema due to poisoning.

Police recovered a one-litre bottle of poisonous methamidophos and sleeping tablets from Cde Midzi’s vehicle, raising fears that he could have committed suicide.