MDC-T fears for missing Timba’s life

BY PATIENCE NYANGOVE MDC-T yesterday said it feared for the life of Jameson Timba, the Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office after he was seized by state security agents on Friday for allegedly insulting President Robert Mugabe. Police have denied arresting the minister who is also the MDC-T’s secretary for international affairs despite his personal assistant Munyaradzi Bwanya saying he saw officers, including the notorious Crispen Makedenge, taking him to Harare Central Police station. Makedenge was accused of abducting and torturing human rights campaigner Jestina Mukoko in 2008. MDC-T sent text messages to journalists and its supporters claiming that it had information that the minister was being tortured at an unknown location. “Lawyers are failing to locate the arrested MDC secretary for international affairs Hon Jameson Timba,” MDC-T said in one of the text messages. “The MDC fears for his life.” MDC-T Harare spokesperson Obert Gutu said late Friday night they got information that Timba was being held at Rhodesville Police Station. However, when colleagues and family went to the station to try and give him warm clothing and food they were told by the police that he was not being held there. “They denied that they had him there although we doubt their truthfulness,” he said. “As a party we are worried about the unconventional methods being used by the police. “As a constitutional body the ZRP should resort to conventional methods of arresting people instead of using mafia tactics that are akin to abducting people.” Police spokesman Superitendent Andrew Phiri said he did know anything about Timba’s arrest. He said he had only read about the arrest in yesterday’s newspapers. The minister’s arrest has been linked to comments by Zanu PF politburo member Jonathan Moyo who said Timba and Tsvangirai must be arrested for saying Mugabe lied about the outcome of the extraordinary Sadc summit on Zimbabwe on June 12. Mugabe and Zanu PF claimed Sadc had rejected the March communiqué, the regional bo-dy’s organ on peace security that chastised them for engaging in political violence. Timba told a South African Sunday paper that the summit had built on the communiqué. Tsvangirai told a rally in Gweru on Sunday that Mugabe had lied. Analysts believe that although Zanu PF hardliners want Tsvangirai arrested, Mugabe will not risk the collapse of the unity government. Early this year, the Zanu PF hawks demanded Tsvangirai’s arrest after the whistleblower website WikiLeaks released US embassy cables showing that the PM had spoken to American diplomats about the country’s topsy-turvy politics.