VICE-PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa who was present when First Lady Grace Mugabe attacked Johannes Tomana over comments he made on young girls, says people should not take things at “face value”, adding the prosecutor general was “going no-where”.
Tomana is in the eye of a storm over comments he reportedly made on the legal position relating to age of sexual consent.
President Robert Mugabe’s wife, after weeks away from the glare of the public, reportedly seeking treatment for colon cancer in the Far East, was at her vintage self in Kadoma Wednesday, calling for “foolish and insane” Tomana’s ouster.
“Men, you are a problem and you don’t clearly understand. I have heard something I don’t know if it’s true that girls can be married at 12 years,” she thundered.
“A sane person who has children aged 10 years cannot expect to marry off that child in two years’ time.
You will see the person saying such things, but later to say that I was misquoted; why were you saying that in the first place? We will hit you with clenched fists. I, Mrs Mugabe, I will kick him,” Grace said.
But Mnangagwa, asked about Tomana’s future by MDC-T Glen View North MP Fanuel Munengami in Parliament Thursday, said the country’s chief prosecutor was “going no- where”.
“Mr. Speaker Sir, the problem is that the hon. member did not make a follow up on the subsequent discussions on the issue on whether Mr. Tomana was really guilty of the offence.
“Nobody took into account the explanation given by Mr. Tomana that he was misunderstood and that his speech was misinterpreted,” Mnangagwa said.
Mnangagwa, who also attended the function at which the First Lady demanded that the Prosecutor General be shown the door, told the national assembly that government did not operate on the whims of media reports.
“Therefore, there is no case against him because he said he was misquoted. It is only that we are two different people; if I see something in the press, I do not believe it straight away but take it with a pinch of salt.
“I would therefore advise my fellow hon. members not to take everything at face value because one day you will be in the papers being blamed for murdering your own mother.
So please verify what you read before you take it seriously,” the vice president said.NewZimbabwe.com
2 Comments