TWO Zanu PF activists have been convicted for cyber bullying and harassment.
They were found guilty of harassing the party's aspiring candidate for Gweru Urban constituency Constain Mukanganike.
Gweru magistrate Arnold Maburo convicted them before warning them against insulting people using social media platforms.
The two, Lovemore Reketai Dhingaka and Bernard Tsotsi, were being charged under section 164B of Zimbabwe’s Cyber Security and Data Protection Act, which prohibits the use of electronic communication systems to bully or harass others.
Throughout trial, the two attempted to drag top Zanu PF officials into their case but the magistrate warned them against using the party’s name in their criminal activities.
They did not dispute that they uttered abusive words against Mukanganike and maintained that from 2021 he embezzled their subscriptions towards a housing scheme.
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The State quizzed them why they did not report Mukanganike to the police before dismissing their allegations as baseless.
It was the State’s case that Dhingaka and Tsotsi posted messages on social media denigrating Mukanganike.
The court heard that on October 28 last year, Dhingaka and Tsotsi, who are members of a WhatsApp group titled Gweru Vendors, allegedly sent voice messages insinuating that Mukanganike was a “thief” and influencing other group members not to listen to him.
Mukanganike (51), who is the managing director of Cosfoam Projects, reportedly received voice notes from Pluckcedes Madhirize, another member of the WhatsApp group, who had recorded them.
He subsequently reported the matter to the police leading to the activists’ arrest and arraignment before the courts.