The Sunday News
Sunday News Reporter
A BUDIRIRO family that operates a printing company from their home have reportedly been targeting by suspected members of the ruling Zanu-PF after they were awarded contracts to print campaign material for the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).
Knowledge Taund-Sautare and his wife Sandra Chibanda have been operating the backyard printing company and a motor mechanics workshop from their house in Budiriro.
Their printing company got a majority of their orders from the CCC via a well-known CCC member, Morblessing Ali, who reportedly had developed a close relationship with the family.
However, despite having run the legitimate business ventures for some time, they have been targeted after they were awarded the contracts for the printing of the CCC t-shirts, caps among other campaign material.
The family has alleged they have been targeted by members from the ruling party who have attacked them and also accused them of convening illegal party gatherings.
Investigations by this publication revealed that so intense have been the attacks that at one point Taund-Sautare has been abducted by unknown assailants while Chibanda has been also attacked at their house and survived a rape ordeal after their children’s screams deterred the attackers.
Despite getting the contracts to print the campaign materials, the family is not involved in politics their only link being Ali, who is part of the organizing team of party meetings in the area.
“The problem started when they started getting these contracts to print the CCC campaign materials. First, Taund-Sautare was allegedly abducted by people suspected to be linked to the ruling party where he was tortured and threatened to stop printing the material.
“At the same time his wife and children were attacked at their house, with the people claiming to be police saying they were looking for the whereabouts of her husband, this is despite, here having reported here husband missing to the police, who in fact her dismissed her claims,” said a relative who declined to be named fearing victimization.
It is alleged when their house was searched the printed t-shirts were discovered and confiscated as ‘evidence’.
According to police sources the couple is now on the wanted list after they went into hiding despite having being ordered to report to the police.
“We have been searching for them but some people claim they went into hiding for some unknown reason, we appeal to anyone who might know their whereabouts to approach any police station,” said the police source.
