Linda Masarira condemns vigilante attack on Madhuku

A vigilante attack on a political party's offices in Zimbabwe has dragged constitutional rights into the spotlight, and opposition voices are demanding answers fast.

Masarira condemns the NCA attack

• Linda Masarira, leader of the LEAD Party, came out swinging against the assault on Professor Lovemore Madhuku and his National Constitutional Assembly members.
• Her statement dropped on Sunday, March 1, 2026, just hours after the incident went down.
• Masarira called the attack barbaric and said every progressive Zimbabwean should be speaking out against it.
• Allegations that some Zimbabwe Republic Police officers may have been in on it are part of what she's demanding answers about.

The constitutional angle Masarira is pushing

• Section 67 of Zimbabwe's 2013 Constitution protects the right to form parties, campaign freely, and engage in peaceful political activity.
• Masarira also flagged protections under Sections 57, 58, 60, and 61, covering privacy, assembly, conscience, and free expression.
• Political party offices are private property under the Constitution, and any unauthorized invasion of them is a direct rights violation, she argues.
• Her position is that police are constitutionally bound to protect these rights, not stand aside or actively enable their breach.

What Masarira is demanding from the authorities

• An independent investigation is her first demand, with all perpetrators identified and prosecuted.
• Any officers found complicit in the attack must face prosecution alongside the vigilantes, she insists.
• A public statement from the Commissioner-General of Police reaffirming political rights protection is also on her list.
• ZRP enabling partisan aggression, even passively, erodes public trust and chips away at Zimbabwe's democratic standing, she warns.

ZRP's response to the allegations

• Zimbabwe Republic Police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi flatly denied any police involvement in the attack.
• The statement from Nyathi came out on Sunday night, pushing back against the complicity allegations.
• ZRP also noted that the meeting targeted in the attack had not been officially sanctioned.
• Officers are reportedly keen to get a full picture of exactly what unfolded at the NCA offices.