What do Strive Masiyiwa and Geoff Nyarota have in common?

It is not the Daily News, the paper that Nyarota founded and which Masiyiwa later rescued. It is Central Intelligence Organisation operative Robert Manungo.

According to a diplomatic cable released by Wikileaks, the Daily News carried an interview with Strive Masiyiwa in August 2000 in which the Econet boss said he had been abducted by Manungo at gun point and was detained for a day at Goromonzi 10 years earlier.

The same Manungo was said to have been behind an assassination plot of Nyarota but his would-be killer had chickened out.

Full cable:

¶4Viewing cable 00HARARE4446, MEDIA REPORT: BUSINESSMAN STRIVE MASIYIWA RECOUNTS

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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

091247Z Aug 00

UNCLASSIFIED     PTO2650

PAGE 01       HARARE 04446 091253Z

ACTION AF-00

INFO LOG-00   AMAD-00 A-00     DS-00   EUR-00   UTED-00 TEDE-00

INR-00   IO-00   LAB-01   L-00     OIC-02   IAP-00   USIE-00

IIP-00   DSCC-00 DRL-02   SAS-00     /005W

——————77E582 091253Z /38

FM AMEMBASSY HARARE

TO SECSTATE WASHDC 6805

INFO AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE

AMEMBASSY LONDON

AMEMBASSY PRETORIA

UNCLAS HARARE 004446

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/S, AF/PD, INR/R/MR

YAOUNDE FOR LARRY RICHTER

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: OIIP ZI

SUBJECT: MEDIA REPORT: BUSINESSMAN STRIVE MASIYIWA RECOUNTS

1990 DETENTION BY ZIMBABWEAN CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE

ORGANIZATION

¶1. THE AUGUST 9 EDITION OF THE INDEPENDENT “DAILY NEWS”

CARRIES A PAGE-ONE STORY ABOUT BUSINESSMAN STRIVE

MASIYIWA’S 1990 DETENTION BY MEMBERS OF ZIMBABWE’S

CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE ORGANIZATION (CIO). THE STORY

UNCLASSIFIED

PAGE 02       HARARE 04446 091253Z

LINKS MASIYIWA’S DETENTION TO A RECENT ALLEGED

ASSASSINATION THREAT TO “DAILY NEWS” EDITOR GEOFF

NYAROTA. ACCORDING TO THE NEWS STORY, THE LINK IS THAT

MASIYIWA’S ABDUCTOR IN 1990, ROBERT MANUNGO, IS THE

PERSON NYAROTA’S WOULD-BE KILLER ALLEGED GAVE HIM THE

ASSASSINATION ASSIGNMENT.

¶2. STRIVE MASIYIWA IS THE CEO OF ECONET WIRELESS HOLDINGS,

AND ONE OF ZIMBABWE’S MOST SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSMEN. HE

HAS A LONG HISTORY OF STRUGGLING AGAINST GOVERNMENT

BUREAUCRACY AND CORRUPTION, AND HAS BEEN IN SOUTH AFRICA

FOR SEVERAL MONTHS BECAUSE OF HIS FEAR THAT HE WOULD BE

ARRESTED FOR POLITICAL REASONS IF HE RETURNS TO

ZIMBABWE. HE IS PERCEIVED TO SUPPORT ZIMBABWE’S

OPPOSITION MOVEMENT FOR DEMOCRATIC CHANGE (MDC) AND IS

SAID TO BE WORRIED THAT THIS PERCEPTION MAKES HIM

VULNERABLE TO TRUMPED-UP CHARGES AND LEGAL CHALLENGES.

¶3. THE ARTICLE QUOTES MASIYIWA EXTENSIVELY, AND RECOUNTS

HIS 1990 ABDUCTION AND DETENTION BY CIO AGENTS.

MASIYIWA SAYS HE WAS TAKEN AT GUNPOINT FROM HIS OFFICE

BY TWO CIO AGENTS, ONE OF WHOM, ROBERT MANUNGO, IS

ALLEGED TO HAVE ATTEMPTED TO ARRANGE THE ASSASSINATION

OF “DAILY NEWS” EDITOR GEOFF NYAROTA. THIS ALLEGATION

COMES FROM THE SELF-CONFESSED, WOULD-BE ASSASSIN WHO

CLAIMS TO HAVE GOTTEN COLD FEET ABOUT THE KILLING AT THE

LAST MOMENT.

¶4. THE ARTICLE RELATES MASIYIWA’S ACCOUNT OF THE ABDUCTION

AND DETENTION FOR ONE DAY AT A POLICE STATION IN

GOROMONZI, A SMALL TOWN ABOUT 30 MILES FROM HARARE.

MASIYIWA IS QUOTED IN THE STORY AS SAYING THAT HIS

STRONG RELIGIOUS FAITH BEGAN THE DAY OF HIS ABDUCTION.

HE ALSO SAYS THAT A SENIOR ZIMBABWEAN POLICE OFFICIAL

UNCLASSIFIED

PAGE 03        HARARE 04446 091253Z

TOLD HIM SEVERAL MONTHS LATER THAT HE WAS LUCKY TO HAVE

BEEN RELEASED ALIVE.

¶5. MASIYIWA HAS A STRONG REPUTATION FOR HONESTY AND

INTEGRITY. HIS ACCOUNT OF THE ABDUCTION AND DETENTION

IS CREDIBLE. THE APPARENT PURPOSE OF THE STORY IN THE

“DAILY NEWS” IS TO LEND CREDENCE TO REPORTS THE

NEWSPAPER HAS PUBLISHED IN THE PAST WEEK ABOUT THE PLOT

TO ASSASSINATE ITS EDITOR AND THE ALLEGED CIO CONNECTION

TO THAT PLOT.

IRVING

UNCLASSIFIED

>

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