Monday, 16 March 2009
JOHANNESBURG - The truck that killed Susan Tsvangirai the wife of the Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai in a road crash is owned by Saviour Kasukuwere, a former spy agent in the CIO and Youth and Gender Development Minister in the inclusive government, a South African newspaper The Sunday Sun revealed. "Tyson" as he is popularly known, has worked as Robert Mugabe's body guard.
Kasukuwere was one of the first government officials to visit the Prime Minister in hospital at the Avenues Clinic in Harare.
The amazing coincidence of his truck's involvement was revealed in Harare by a private investigator probing the tragic accident that took the life of the Prime Minister's wife Susan.
Kasukuwere has worked in the Zimbabwean government's Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO)'s close Security Unit, a crack department in the spy organisation which reports directly to the President. Its role is to spy on CIO agents and government officials, including Zanu(PF) politicians.
The notorious Mt Darwin MP has a menacing body and menacing looks and a close confidante of the President alongside the Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and he is normally tasked to carry out ruthless missions on behalf of Robert Mugabe.
Sources say Kasukuwere gained the favour of Robert Mugabe and Emmerson Mnangagwa when he worked for (Central Mechanical Equipment Department (CMED) as a driver and spy agent monitoring the movement and servicing of government officials' vehicles.
Over the years, Kasukuwere has become obsessed with eliminating Zanu(PF) rivals in Mashonaland Central to secure his position as the unchallenged political baron in that province.
It is believed that Kasukuwere drove out Mashonaland Central businessman James Makamba into exile and General Solomon Mujuru who had vast farming interests in the region was sent packing back to his native Chivu.
Tyson is also linked to the death of the province's budding young Zanu(PF) politicians Border Gezi, Elliot Manyika and the recent arrest of former Guruwe MP David Butau on his return from exile in the UK. Butau, like James Makamba was Solomon Mujuru's business front man.
In 2005 he spied on Phillip Chiyangwa, Tendai Matambanadzo, a banker, and Itai Marchi Zanu-PF director of Security, and long-serving Zimbabwe diplomat Godfrey Dzvairo and they were convicted of breaching the Official Secrets Act and given sentences ranging between five to six years in jail on accusations that they sold information to South African Intelligence.
Kasukuwere is also linked to the attempted murder of MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa two years ago.
In the disputed violent Presidential elections run-off, he directed political assasinations, abductions and torture in Mashonaland Central and engineered attacks on US embassy vehicles.
During his time as a Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) operative in Manicaland in the Nineties, he was nicknamed "Mike Tyson" because of his ruthlessness and precision in dealing with political foes.
Kasukuwere is a wealthy individual and his youthful brother Stanley had a brief stint as Chairman of Dynamos football club.
In a report by a Zimbabwe Sunday paper The Standard, John Snow International (JSI) "Deliver project" has opened an internal investigation on how the "killer truck" that claimed the life of the Prime Minister’s wife Susan was dispatched last Friday, in a new twist to the accident.
The truck was involved in an accident with Tsvangirai's car on Friday.
The Supply Chain Management System (SCMS), is the contractor of the "USAid/Deliver Projects" aimed at strengthening HIV/Aids and family planning supply chains in developing countries run by JSI.
According to the official JSI website the "Deliver project" helps developing countries "establish effective and efficient supply chains for public health and family planning programmes".
A confidential internal memorandum in the possession of The Standard, dated March 9 — three days after the accident — said the truck belonged to JSI but was not driven by a JSI driver.
"As you may have heard, there was a tragic car accident on Friday (March 6) in Zimbabwe in which the Prime Minister (Morgan Tsvangirai) was injured and his wife was killed.
"The vehicle involved in this accident was registered to USAid/Deliver (a JSI Project) although not driven by a JSI driver, as far as we know. At this point, further details about the accident are unknown.
"Understandably, this tragedy has generated a lot of media interest. If you receive any inquiries from the media, we ask that you please direct them to Penelope Riseborough, WEI/JSI Director of Communication in Boston," the memorandum said.
JSI has launched an internal investigation to unravel how the truck was dispatched under unclear circumstances, leading to the fatal accident along the Harare-Masvingo highway on March 6.
Sources said that an "administrator", identified only as N Dube and in charge of the delivery trucks, had been quizzed by management amid reports that she had been sent on suspension pending investigations.
The administrator was not at work when The Standard visited JSI head offices at Agriculture House in Marlborough on Friday.
"The administrator has been quizzed on how the truck was released laden with SCMC drugs but with an unofficial driver. If it was coming from delivery in Masvingo it should have been empty," the source told The Standard.
It was not immediately possible to get details of the whereabouts of the administrator because of the blanket ban on talking to the media.
David Alt, the JSI’s country director, was locked in meetings when The Standard visited JSI headquarters. He did not respond to written questions on the alleged suspension of the administrator.
However, late on Friday afternoon JSI released a statement in which it said: "We have learned with great sadness about the death of Susan Tsvangirai in a tragic accident on Friday afternoon. We cannot at this time make any comment on the detail of the accident but we are co-operating fully with the authorities to ensure the investigation is open and transparent.
"We send our deepest condolences to the Prime Minister and his family at this terrible time and hope they find peace and comfort in the coming weeks."
Prime Minister Tsvangirai and his wife were being driven in a Toyota 4x4 Land Cruiser to their rural home in Buhera, when they were sideswiped by the Nissan UD truck driven by Chinoona Mwanda (35). The PM’s Land Cruiser was forced into a spin rolling over at least three times, killing his wife Susan.
Mwanda’s colleagues told The Standard he had been sent for "rehabilitation" but no one is saying where or for how long. They also said other staff at different sites had been recalled and operations put on hold.
Its website says John Snow Inc. and its no profit affiliate JSI Research & Training Institute Inc, are public health research and consulting firms dedicated to improving the health of individuals and communities throughout the world.
"JSI builds local capacity to address critical health problems, collaborating with local partners to assist countries, governments, communities, families, and individuals to develop their skills and identify solutions that meet their public health needs.
"Through management assistance, research and evaluation, education, and training, JSI works to enable agencies and health professionals to provide appropriate services in an effective and compassionate manner."
JSI, says the website, has implemented projects in 102 countries, and currently operates from seven US and 38 international offices, with 1100 host country national field-based staff.
The Zimbabwe Mail/The Sunday Sun (SA)/The Zimbabwe Standard
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