{"id":12914,"date":"2026-04-08T12:06:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T12:06:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=12914"},"modified":"2026-04-08T12:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T12:06:21","slug":"zim-gbc-news-crew-attacked-in-bulawayo-mere-zanu-pf-supporters-not-cio-investigation-reveals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=12914","title":{"rendered":"Zim GBC News Crew Attacked in Bulawayo: \u2018Mere Zanu-PF Supporters, Not CIO\u2019 \u2013 Investigation Reveals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube | Zim GBC News<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bulawayo \u2014 A video report by Zim GBC News documenting public opposition to the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment Bill (No. 3) in Bulawayo has been viewed over 19,000 times on YouTube since it aired last week. But the story behind the story has now emerged: five unknown men attacked the Zim GBC News crew during the coverage \u2013 and an investigative journalist has traced two of them to ordinary Zanu-PF supporters, not government security operatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The attack, which occurred in full view of Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers, has sparked outrage among viewers, many of whom took to the comments section to condemn both the violence and the proposed constitutional changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018They acted like CIO\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the filming of public hearings on the controversial Bill \u2013 which seeks to extend presidential and parliamentary terms from five to seven years and effectively suspend the 2028 elections \u2013 five men confronted the Zim GBC News team, grabbing a microphone and attempting to confiscate a video camera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Witnesses said the men behaved \u201cas if they were from the government\u2019s Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO).\u201d However, a follow-up investigation by Zim GBC News\u2019s investigative desk has established that the attackers were not state security agents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTwo of the five men who attacked the Zim GBC News crew are mere Zanu-PF supporters,\u201d the publication established.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The alleged ringleader, according to sources, is a conductor for a prominent bus company that operates routes including Bulawayo\u2013Harare, Bulawayo\u2013Victoria Falls, and Harare\u2013Mutare. When this reporter visited the bus rank on George Silundika Street and Fourth Avenue, the conductor reportedly saw the journalist approaching and hid. Investigations are ongoing to establish his full identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A second attacker \u2013 the man seen on camera trying to grab the microphone from the reporter before eventually confiscating the video camera \u2013 is said to hold a senior position in the organisation Mahwindi for ED.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He is also believed to be the owner of the white Honda Fit used to intimidate the reporters on that day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police inaction baffles journalists<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps most disturbing to the Zim GBC News team was the response of the Zimbabwe Republic Police.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll this happened in front of ZRP details,\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen this reporter asked the ZRP to arrest these culprits, he was told to go and report at the Central Police Station Charge Office, some two hundred meters away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No arrests have been made to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Bussed-in\u2019 crowds, not Bulawayo residents<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The investigation also uncovered a troubling pattern regarding the composition of the crowd at the Bulawayo hearings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt has turned out that most of these people were not from Bulawayo, but had been bussed in from nearby Shona\u2011speaking areas of the country,\u201d the report found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over a thousand people were seated outside the venue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One YouTube user, @bhekulwazimoya9100, commented: \u201cThose people are not from Bulawayo \u2013 they were brought there and told what to say.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another viewer, @MrMusaton, added:
\u201cThey bused people into Bulawayo for the residents to not have a voice. Same as Chitungwiza. It\u2019s bad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Viewers speak out: \u2018No to 2030\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The YouTube comments section has become a barometer of public sentiment, with the vast majority of those who commented expressing opposition to the Constitutional Amendment Bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@whateverhoweva wrote:
\u201cNow this is journalism!!!!! Keep it up, do not fear.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@AntonyMpofu-p6e commented on the footage of a female interviewee who struggled to explain the Bill: \u201cUmama lowu kukomnyama ubambile. This woman doesn\u2019t know what to say. No to 2030.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@ProgressGandidze-g4d said:
\u201cWELL DONE SON. Keep teaching people \u2013 they don\u2019t know what Amendment Bill 3 means. Please keep it up so people know and understand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@PrinceMadumane-h4e was scathing:
\u201cKunzima yaz. These kids don\u2019t know anything. Mina ngokwa angiboni amadevelopments. CIO? What matsotsi. Zanu PF system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@mtdresearch532provided a detailed analysis:
\u201cThe very people who sacrificed their youth to end minority rule under Ian Smith are now being accused of creating a new form of minority rule\u2026 The bill confirms the fears: the death of \u2018one man, one vote\u2019; the 2030 extension; reclaiming the tools of oppression.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@jamesndemera975 expressed concern:
\u201cIt is very worrying that those you interviewed were of mixed ages and had a similar opinion of wanting ED to continue. One wonders the level of brainwashing that has occurred.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A \u2018spaza shop\u2019 and a warning<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some comments were brief but cutting. @vhafuwimbedzi6318 simply wrote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cZimbabwe is a spaza shop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@missmadas203 issued a stark warning:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople will die by the time this shit ends. Mnangagwa is ready to kill the whole country in a flash like he did during Gukurahundi.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others praised the journalism itself. @TheDrewrules said: \u201cGreat Journalism! Real Journalism!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@simbarashemukwada6214 added:
\u201cWonderful my brother.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018People don\u2019t understand the Bill\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recurring theme in the comments was that ordinary citizens have not been properly informed about the Bill\u2019s contents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@venanciamukanda3587 observed:
\u201cVano vatya kutaura chokwadi pamberi pecamera. And it looks like people in Zimbabwe don\u2019t understand Bill 3. This is how they are robbed of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@herbertsaiba250
lamented:
\u201cI\u2019m disappointed ngalaba abantwana. They don\u2019t even know a payslip.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

@RejoiceNyamunda-b1u added:
\u201cMost people don\u2019t know about the content of the Bill but they are in support of it. Sad how people support the Bill that will bring more suffering and take away people\u2019s right.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Call for accountability<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zim GBC News continues to investigate the identities of the remaining three attackers and is calling on the ZRP to act on the evidence already gathered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As one viewer,
@ChamuMash, put it:
\u201cWhat is disheartening about the amendment of this Bill is that those supporting it are not well informed \u2013 this was done purposefully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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