Government has stepped up its disinformation campaign to new levels in a bid to give hope to a gloomy, impoverished population and prevent social unrest. In what observers have referred to as voodoo politics, government has invented a story on the “discovery” of diesel in Chinhoyi and a hoax about diamonds in Epworth to mislead the population and give the people hope that the situation is not as bad as it appears. Sources say the Chinhoyi diesel saga is part of a government propaganda campaign designed to divert attention from current problems and make people believe that there is something to look forward to in the future. Government recently set up an inter-ministerial taskforce to investigate the alleged discovery of diesel at Lions Den, near Chinhoyi. However, our sources say government is well aware there is no diesel there.
The taskforce’s members are Defence minister Sydney Sekeramayi, Home Affairs minister Kembo Mohadi and State Security minister Didymus Mutasa. It was set up by the Zanu PF politburo following a report compiled by police Deputy Commissioner Godwin Matanga that said the liquid oozing out of the rocks in Chinhoyi was pure diesel. Matanga’s report added that vehicles were responding quite well to the liquid. The Zimbabwe Independent is reliably informed that government also sent an assessment team, independently of the ministerial taskforce, to the area last Saturday to further investigate the matter despite knowing full well that there has been no discovery of diesel in the area. Last month, on May 7, acting Noczim chief executive Isaac Mhaka told parliament’s Transport and Communications portfolio committee that the diesel discovery claims were a hoax. Mhaka was asked by the committee - which is dominated by Zanu PF legislators - to confirm the discovery of diesel in Chinhoyi. He told the committee that the traditional leader who claimed to have made the discovery was pulling wool over people’s eyes. “We cannot confirm (that there is diesel in Chinhoyi) but what I can say is that if you remember some three months ago diesel was said to have been discovered at Lion’s Den and the provincial leadership with some of our officials went to try and see what was there, only to find a possessed individual who claimed that there was diesel, yet he poured diesel and lit it when people had come to investigate,” Mhaka said.
Government’s disinformation campaign does not end with the Chinhoyi diesel saga. Our sources say it has been extended to the recent “discovery” of diamonds in Epworth, with government being accused of trying to hoodwink the visiting Kimberley Process team, which is here to investigate illegal diamond mining at Marange, by having them visit Epworth instead of Marange. Government has been accused of facilitating illegal diamond mining in Marange. According to sources, government intended to deceive the Kimberley Process team using the Epworth diamond miners by giving the impression citizens start illegal diamond mining on their own. The Kimberley team refused and pro-ceeded to Marange foiling the plan to portray government as genuinely interested in curbing illegal mining activity. After the Kimberley team refused to visit Epworth, Mines and Mining Development minister Amos Midzi said there were no diamonds in Epworth. All efforts to get com-ments from government spokesperson, George Charamba and members of the ministerial taskforce were fruitless at the time of going to press.