Gono Takes the Fifth on 'Brutal' Moyo Attack
Reached for comment by VOA Friday, Gono was holding back, only saying, “I have no comment on that. You can call Moyo and seek the clarification that you need.”
WASHINGTON DC — Zanu PF senatorial aspirant Gideon Gono was holding his peace on Friday following an unrestrained attack by Information Minister Jonathan Moyo over the former central bank chief’s botched legislative bid. Gono, who was nominated by Zanu PF to take up its vacant Buhera seat in Manicaland Province, was disqualified by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) last week on the basis that he was not a registered voter in the constituency. The former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor blamed his enemies for “playing games hoping that they can torpedo the Zanu PF Politburo and Manicaland province, as well as the Buhera District's choice.” Although Gono claims that he transferred his name as a voter from Harare to Buhera, ZEC voided the move saying it was done after the voter registration for last year’s elections was over. It also says the transfer was done unconstitutionally by the Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede, whose voter registration role has now been taken over by the electoral commission. But Gono wants the legislature to tweak the laws and validate his nomination. “Fortunately, I have all the patience in the world to wait for whoever needs to do their job to do it even if it means waiting till 2018, 2023 or beyond,” Gono said. Moyo, a long-time ally of presidential hopeful and Justice Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa, took umbrage and blasted Gono's “ignorance of the law”, calling his accusations "emotional and reckless." “Rather than personalizing this process, distorting facts and casting aspersions while publicly displaying his ignorance of the law, Dr. Gono should tell voters... why he did not register by 10 July, 2013,” Moyo said. “It is repugnant and unacceptable that the enactment of any law should be hurried or done to suit the political interests of any individual or to mitigate the consequences of anybody’s ignorance of the law.” Reached for comment by VOA Friday, Gono was holding back, only saying, “I have no comment on that. You can call Moyo and seek the clarification that you need.” Zanu PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo also declined to comment saying the issue will be discussed internally.