Unidentified men raid Siwela’s home

News
THE family of fugitive Matabeleland Liberation Organisation (MLO) president, Paul Siwela, is living in fear after two unidentified men driving an unregistered green Land Rover defender, raided his Woodville home, looking for him and his wife.

THE family of fugitive Matabeleland Liberation Organisation (MLO) president, Paul Siwela, is living in fear after two unidentified men driving an unregistered green Land Rover defender, raided his Woodville home, looking for him and his wife.

Richard Muponde Senior Reporter

The pair, suspected to be members of the security agents, raided the home at around 10am yesterday.

Siwela, who is believed to be holed up in Sweden, yesterday confirmed the raid at his house on social media.

“Two people named Nkomo and White came (to my) home with an unregistered green defender and asked for the identity of people at home and their names and the whereabouts of my wife,” he said.

“They questioned them about my whereabouts and about my last visit to Zimbabwe.

“These two were in plain clothes and in unregistered vehicle and this raises many questions about their motive.

“They could be law and order police or members of the CIO (Central Intelligence Organisation).

“They found my mother, who is ill suffering from a stroke and other relatives and visitors at home.

“What worries us is the unregistered vehicle.”

Siwela said the men took the names and identity numbers of all visitors at his home for unknown reasons.

“Is that legal?” he asked.

“My children are petrified. The Zimbabwe government knows that I am not in Zimbabwe and would not be coming there anytime soon until we negotiate our grievances, so why harass my family who have nothing to do with my reason of not being home?”

He added: “The Zimbabwe government failed to give me security details and opted to assassinate me and why would they think I would come back?”

Siwela left the country in August 2013 fearing he would be assassinated, amid claims that the police failed to protect him.

He did not escape from the treason charges he faces, a letter written by him revealed.

The letter written by Siwela on August 24 2013 was handed over to the trial judge Justice Nicholas Ndou on the continuation of the treason trial, where he was jointly charged with John Gazi and Charles Thomas.

It was accompanied by another letter from police in Queens Park Police Station dated November 29, 2011 advising Siwela that the police were investigating a report of threats to his life.

Gazi and Thomas have since been acquitted of treason by the same judge.

They were charged with unlawfully attempting to remove the government of President Robert Mugabe.