Harare – A bitter and long-standing feud between Happyton Bonyongwe, former Director-General of Zimbabwe’s Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), and Zanu-PF spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa has exploded into the open following the release of Bonyongwe’s explosive memoirs, “One Among Many: My contribution to the Zimbabwean story”.
The book details a complex history of animosity, revealing previously undisclosed details surrounding the November 2017 coup that ousted Robert Mugabe.
Bonyongwe’s account paints a picture of a deep-seated hostility from Mutsvangwa, a hostility he struggles to fully comprehend. He recounts several incidents that, he believes, shed light on the origins of this animosity. One such incident occurred during the height of the coup.
On 20 November 2017, Mutsvangwa encountered Bonyongwe in Parliament, where Bonyongwe was discussing the unfolding events with Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda. Instead of acknowledging Bonyongwe, Mutsvangwa abruptly left, an action Bonyongwe attributes to Mutsvangwa’s belief that he was attempting to undermine the coup.
In reality, Bonyongwe explains, he and Mudenda were discussing upcoming parliamentary business, given Bonyongwe’s role as Leader of Government Business and Justice Minister.
The generals orchestrating the coup, according to Bonyongwe, suspected Mugabe was planning a counter-offensive, with Bonyongwe and several former ministers advising him. Bonyongwe denies this accusation.
He reveals that Mugabe, in a desperate attempt to avert the coup, even went so far as to try and locate Air Marshal Perence Shiri, then in Dubai, to take command of the security forces and launch a counter-attack. When this failed, Mugabe’s efforts shifted from attempting to dismiss General Chiwenga from the army to offering him the presidency within a single week, highlighting the chaotic nature of the situation.
Mutsvangwa’s animosity towards Bonyongwe became even more pronounced after the coup. In November 2017, addressing journalists in Harare, Mutsvangwa stated: “When we wanted to show this regime that we the fighters of the liberation were the ones who brought Zanu PF and Mugabe to power and that we were not happy, we became victims of violence which hit the conscience of all Zimbabweans. You all know that two years ago we were tear-gassed and water cannoned by the Zimbabwe regime. It was a painful occasion and we want people who did that to be still accountable in the fullness of time, but what it also did is that it opened the eyes of the Zimbabwe people as to the extremities to which this regime would go to try to maintain its power.”
He further accused the CIO, under Bonyongwe’s leadership, of being at the heart of corruption and human rights abuses during Mugabe’s era.
“All the rot which have forced you the people of Zimbabwe to suffer so much, the CIO should have been vigilant. All the problems which have finally forced the army which is normally there to just protect the borders to intervene in national politics would have been corrected if the CIO and the police had done their job, and we are saying you were derelict on duty Bonyongwe as Mugabe was.” This was a significant attack, given the CIO’s widely feared reputation.
The attacks continued even after the coup, with Mutsvangwa using the January 2021 burial of the late Foreign Affairs Minister Sibusiso Busi Moyo, a retired Major-General who had announced the coup, to launch further scathing attacks. In his obituary, Mutsvangwa made “false charges” that Bonyongwe had signed “fatwas” and was wielding the “sword of Damocles” against former comrades.
Bonyongwe offers several explanations for Mutsvangwa’s persistent hostility. He suggests that Mutsvangwa wrongly attributes his political setbacks to the CIO under his leadership, rather than to his own shortcomings. He notes that Mugabe favoured Mutsvangwa and his “university group,” making it unlikely that the CIO would have fabricated negative reports against him.
Another potential source of conflict, according to Bonyongwe, is the Chinese-funded Farmers’ World Farm Mechanisation Scheme (FWFMS). Mutsvangwa alleged mismanagement and corruption within the scheme, where the CIO had a stake. Bonyongwe counters that the problem stemmed from beneficiaries, including Mutsvangwa himself, failing to repay loans, hindering the scheme’s ability to repay its Chinese creditors. He points out that he personally received nothing from the scheme, unlike Mutsvangwa, who received equipment valued at US$67,000 and failed to make repayments.
A seemingly minor incident at Victoria 22 restaurant in Harare in 2015 also appears to have contributed to the escalating tensions. Bonyongwe recounts a chance encounter with Mutsvangwa and the then British ambassador, Deborah Bronnert. After a brief greeting, Bonyongwe received a letter from General Chiwenga containing a scathing attack from Mutsvangwa accusing him of undiplomatic conduct.
The depth of Mutsvangwa’s bitterness towards Bonyongwe is evident in his actions during and after the coup, where he actively sought to hold Bonyongwe accountable for alleged “corruption and human rights abuses”.
Bonyongwe’s memoirs offer a compelling insight into the complex power dynamics and personal rivalries that shaped Zimbabwean politics during a turbulent period. The publication of these revelations promises to further fuel this already intense and highly publicised feud.
