‘Leader of the infamous MDC-T Vanguard, Shakespeare Mukoyi has threatened to “kill MDC-T Deputy Treasurer, Charlton Hwende ” if he is not elected as Member of Parliament for Kuwadzana East in the forthcoming elections.’

Mukoyi, who is widely believed to have been MDC-T President, Nelson Chamisa’s henchman and enforcer ever since the latter took over the reins at the opposition party, was heard complaining that he would not allow that party’s leadership to dump him now after all he has done for them.This past week, Mukoyi’s rival in party primary elections and MDC-T Deputy Treasurer, Charlton Hwende took to Facebook to raise the alarm after being threatened with death by Mukoyi.

“Yesterday I received disturbing news that my opponent was moving around with a gun threatening to shoot me. I am mentioning it here so that if anything happens to me people will know what happened to me,” he wrote.

Sources in Kuwadzana East revealed that the gun-wielding Mukoyi slept in a hall where primaries were supposed to be held and threatened to “kill someone” if he was not elected MP. He is said to have declared that he had already won and no voting would take place, forcing the cancellation of the primary elections. Mukoyi reportedly vowed that he would not allow Chamisa to dump him now after all he has done for him.

Hwende also confirmed on his Facebook page that the primaries had been disrupted by the Vanguard, posting that “I would like to let you know that our primary election in Kuwadzana east was stopped by the so called vanguard youths led by their leader who was my opponent in the election…I hope the party will look into this matter as my safety is now a matter of concern.”

Ironically, the MDC-T leadership, including Hwende, has all along been claiming that the Vanguard is not a violent grouping despite repeated attacks on former MDC-T Deputy President, Thokozani Khupe.

Last year in Bulawayo members of the Vanguard were implicated in violence at that party’s offices where Khupe and her supporters were holding a meeting. In February this year, At the late Morgan Tsvangirai’s burial in Buhera , members of the group allegedly tried to set on fire a hut where Khupe and other MDC-T leaders had sought refuge. In march,the group was fingered again in violence at that party’s offices in Bulawayo. Source – Nicole Hondo