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	Zimbabwe: Cio, State Media Connive in Ncube Smear Campaign By Loughty Dube allAfrica August 25, 2007 http://allafrica.com/stories/200708250045.html DETAILS of a plot hatched by the CIO spy agency working hand in hand with state media journalists have emerged with indications that the two worked hand in glove in planning and exposing the adultery story involving Archbishop Pius Ncube. Archbishop Ncube was slapped with a $20 billion adultery lawsuit at St Mary's Cathedral a month ago after he was served with the papers by the Deputy Sheriff, who was accompanied by a large contingent of journalists and photographers from the state media. However, details have emerged that the journalists present during the serving of papers were part of a well-orchestrated plot involving the CIO. It has also emerged that the state media journalists and even President Robert Mugabe had information about the issue long before the story was broken. Sources among journalists that were part of the team say the plot was master-minded by the state intelligence agency and involved editors at the state media organisations and involved a South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) team. It also emerged that Archbishop Ncube was duped by the SABC team to agree to an interview where he unknowingly answered questions that were later on twisted to implicate him in the adultery case. The SABC team, led by correspondent Supa Mandiwanzira, arrived in Bulawayo two days before the adultery story was exposed, after fixing an appointment with Archbishop Ncube for an interview on the situation in Zimbabwe. Archbishop Ncube agreed to the interview after he was told that Mandiwanzira was the SABC correspondent in Zimbabwe. However, SABC is now investigating the allegations that Mandiwanzira used SABC credentials to set up the sting interview after viewers raised concerns over the integrity of the South African broadcaster. Mandiwanzira runs one of the top media production companies in Zimbabwe, Mighty Movies, and also provides the SABC with news productions on Zimbabwe. The current affairs managing director of SABC, Snuki Zikalala, quoted in South African media last week said they would investigate the matter immediately and take "appropriate action". "We are hearing this for the first time. If there is any truth in what has been said then we will take the appropriate action," Zikalala said. He said Mandiwanzira was not a fulltime SABC employee, but owned an agency from which the SABC commissioned stories on a daily basis. Mighty Movies might lose its contract with SABC if it is found that Mandiwanzira abused his SABC credentials. In a sting operation that was not communicated to station heads at the ZBC Montrose studios the Harare-based journalists, led by Mandiwanzira, arrived at the studios on Friday and did not state their mission as is usually the case when news crews have assignments covered in the jurisdiction of sister stations. Mandiwanzira's cameraman was on Sunday, a day before the sting operation, at St Mary's Cathedral where he was seen filming the Sunday Mass but left earlier when he realised that Archbishop Ncube was not presiding over the ceremony. On Monday morning the day of the operation, Mandiwanzira, allegedly then provided SABC jackets to Zimbabwean state broadcasters, editor-in-chief Tazzen Mandizvidza and Voice of Zimbabwe station head Happison Muchechetere who interviewed Ncube, under the guise that they were from the SABC. Mandiwanzira also recruited Montrose ZBC photographer, Solo Chinara to film footage that was used on the ZTV news bulletin. According to the plan hatched by the CIO, the idea was to ensure that the SABC crew kept Archbishop Ncube in the city for the interview to allow papers to be served on him while cameras were rolling. It is alleged that during the interview one of the initial questions put to Ncube by Mandiwanzira was what he thought about Catholic bishops in the US who had broken their vows of celibacy. Ncube replied to the question: "Everybody is a sinner, there is nobody who does not sin." The statement was later broadcast on ZTV to appear as if Ncube had been responding to a question on whether he had engaged in an adulterous relationship with Rosemary Sibanda, the woman whose husband is suing Archbishop Ncube for adultery. Munyaradzi Nzarayapenga, the lawyer representing Onesimus Sibanda, the man suing Archbishop Ncube, convened a quick press conference for state journalists to announce the lawsuit. In Zimbabwe it is unusual for lawyers to call press conferences for any case they are handling. But the involvement of the state in the matter was made more apparent by statements made by President Mugabe, a week before the sensational allegations were made public. Mugabe told Zanu PF supporters during a gathering at the Zanu PF headquarters in Harare, soon after a closed door meeting of the central committee, that there were some members of the clergy who were involved in sexual relationships with married women, yet they wanted to project images of puritans. Mugabe warned that clergymen sleeping around with other people's wives were going to be exposed soon for what they are. "Where is the godliness?" Mugabe said at the time. "One cannot tell the difference between a bishop and a layman anymore. Some of them have sworn to celibacy, but they sleep around." The earlier claims by Mugabe indicate that he was aware of the impending smear campaign by the CIO to tarnish Ncube. It has also emerged that the breaking of the story was to be done in three phases and after the publicising of the case there are still two more phases left before the media completes its hatchet-job on the vocal cleric. The other two phases will allege that Archbishop Ncube has two children with an Esigodini woman while in other stories the state media will allege that Sibanda will claim that Archbishop Ncube infected his wife who then infected him with the HIV and Aids virus.
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