Southern Eye
By Nqobile Bhebhe
26 July 2013
A MEMBER of senator David Coltart’s campaign team was on Wednesday detained by police in Bulawayo for allegedly tearing a Zanu PF campaign poster.
Coltart said the incident happened at Woodville shopping centre and the accused, Malthus Ncube, is due to appear in court today.
Ncube was nabbed after allegedly being spotted by a Zanu PF activist pulling down a poster, but he argued that the A4 bill was in a drain.
“I got a call that three of my members had been detained by police on allegations of tearing up Zanu PF posters belonging to an aspiring councillor, at woodville shopping centre,†Coltart said.
He said the allegations are based on a single witness.
“Even if the charge were proven on the evidence of one Zanu PF member, at most he will get a fine for tearing an A4 poster worth about two cents.â€
MDC officials said their members where putting up posters in Woodville shopping centre when they were confronted by a Zanu PF activist claiming that they tore their campaign material.
The Zanu PF activist picked the A4 poster from the drain and alleged than Ncube had torn it.
On Wednesday, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said 37 people had so far been arrested or detained for allegedly pulling down President Robert Mugabe’s campaign posters.
The human rights body said court papers in its possession showed that the majority of the suspects were MDC-T and MDC supporters.