Infiltration Unavoidable In Securocratic States, Ostallos Reacts To Brilliant Dube Senate Appointment

Former CCC deputy spokesperson and close ally of Nelson Chamisa, Gift “Ostallos” Siziba, says infiltration is a serious challenge faced by movements and institutions across the world and is an unavoidable reality in Securocratic states.

Siziba made the remarks after former opposition stalwart Brilliant Dube, a former senior official in Nelson Chamisa’s election team, was among 10 people nominated for appointment to the Senate by President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Dube served as Chamisa’s Chief of Staff during the 2018 elections and was also involved in paying election agents in Mashonaland East during the 2023 elections.

She allegedly failed to pay CCC’s election agents in Mashonaland East during the 2023 polls, which could have derailed the party’s performance in that general election.

She has also been linked to Tendai Biti’s Constitution Defenders Forum, a civic organisation that has opposed the Government’s 2030 agenda.

Her appointment was made under the newly enacted Constitutional Amendment Act No. 3 (CAA3), which gives the President the power to appoint 10 senators based on professional skills and other competencies.

The amendment increases the size of the Senate from 80 to 90 members. Among the other appointees is businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei.

Dube’s appointment to the Senate by Mnangagwa caught many people by surprise, as it indicates she was a ZANU PF member pretending to be opposition all these years.

Posting on social media, Siziba said that infiltration cannot always be prevented, but strong movements must develop systems to identify, vet and counter it, while ensuring that information is properly verified before decisions are made.

“Infiltration is a serious challenge faced by movements and institutions across the world and is an unavoidable reality in Securocratic states,” he wrote.

“Intelligence and security sector officers infiltrate opposition movements world over, and it is their job. All movements do the same.

“Infiltration cannot always be prevented, but strong movements must develop systems to identify, vet and counter it, while ensuring that information is properly verified before decisions are made.

“Going forward, any serious movement seeking to defeat the regime in Harare and build a democratic Zimbabwe will have to invest in intelligence, counter-intelligence, institutional security and robust information verification systems.

“This is not about paranoia; it is about building resilient institutions capable of protecting themselves from manipulation and infiltration.

“Whatever has happened in this case should therefore serve as a valuable lesson to all of us who genuinely remain committed to building a Zimbabwe free from ZANU-PF misrule. We must learn, strengthen our institutions and become wiser in how we organise.”