The trial of activist and #ThisFlag leader, Pastor Evan Mawarire continued yesterday at the High Court with one of the State’s witnesses conceding that Pastor Evan Mawarire had never called for a violent overthrow of the government. However, the witness Detective Chief Inspector Edmore Runganga claimed that Pastor Evan was possibly speaking in code to encourage his followers to commit acts of violence. Mawarire is accused of attempting to overthrow President Mugabe unlawfully and the matter is being heard by Justice Priscilla Chigumba.
During Runganga’s cross-examination by Mawarire’s lawyer, Harrison Nkomo, he said
Communication is very tricky, when one says no to violence they would actually be saying engage in violence, using violence as a password. By saying no to violence, you may never know how his followers were coached.
However, Runganga was forced to concede that Mawarire had never called for violence and that he did not have control over civil servants and commuter omnibuses when he was asked:
In these videos, you accept he (Mawarire) does not say let us take over the government. In the same videos, he goes on to say, stay at home and no to violence. You also accept he had no control over civil servants neither did he have control over commuter omnibuses?
When asked how he could possibly believe that Mawarire had any capacity to take on on the government, Rungaga claimed that Pastor Evan is very influential and likened his movement to Boko Haram saying:
It is just like the Boko Haram system. He started with a church and transformed it into a movement.
The accused is very influential and people listen to him as a man of God.
The trial is continuing.
More: NewsDay
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