Chiefs Demand US$4,000 Monthly, Fuel And Starlink Kits For Gukurahundi Outreach

Chiefs involved in the Gukurahundi outreach programme are said to have demanded allowances of US$4,000 a month, paid in cash, along with Starlink kits and hundreds of litres of fuel coupons to carry out the exercise.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa launched the Gukurahundi community outreach programme on 14 July 2024 at the Bulawayo State House, five years after the initiative was first proposed in 2019.

The hearings are designed to give survivors and victims of the Gukurahundi killings a platform to share their experiences.

They are being overseen by a 14-member panel, led by traditional leaders, tasked with collecting testimonies from affected communities in Matabeleland.

The Standard reported sources as saying the traditional leaders also requested that the government either rent their service vehicles or provide all-terrain vehicles for the exercise. Said the source:

“At present, there is a dispute over the allowances which the chiefs are demanding.

“They were demanding US$4000 a month paid in cash, but the steering committee slashed the figure to US$1100 a month.

“They wanted hundreds of litres of fuel coupons per month, but this was again turned down and an arrangement was made for them to refuel at selected service stations.

“They also wanted Starlink kits installed at their homesteads…”

The chiefs also ran into trouble with authorities after it emerged that many of them had appointed relatives, close family members, and friends to serve on their 14-member panel.

They were reportedly paid three months’ advance allowances of US$1,100 each, totalling at least US$3,300, but the issue of allowances has resurfaced, stalling the outreach programme once again.

The hearings are being held in selected parts of Matabeleland, away from public view, and Midlands, which also suffered during the massacres, has been excluded, raising eyebrows.

Critics have slammed the secrecy surrounding the hearings, saying the process lacks transparency.

During the Gukurahundi massacres, an estimated 20,000 civilians were killed when the government deployed the North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade across Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, and parts of Midlands province.