Mugabe’s Borrowdale Brooke neighbour speaks out

Politics
A Harare man who is expected to appear in court tomorrow after his dogs killed a buck at President Robert Mugabe’s mansion in Borrowdale Brooke last year

A Harare man who is expected to appear in court tomorrow after his dogs killed a buck at President Robert Mugabe’s mansion in Borrowdale Brooke last year is proud to be the First Family’s neighbour.

BY OUR STAFF

Michael Pazarangu
Michael Pazarangu

Michael Pazarangu is facing charges of allowing to “be at large any unmuzzled ferocious dog” as defined in Section 46 (2)(r) of the Third Schedule of the Criminal Law and Codification Act Chapter 9:23.

The Standard yesterday managed to track down Pazarangu for an interview in Harare. Pazarangu said he had “no problem with my neighbour”, adding that he was not interested in politics.

“I am not a politician. You don’t find me in Zanu PF and MDCs because I am not interested in it [politics],” he said.

Pazarangu had a terse “no comment” response when asked whether he had been invited to Bona Mugabe’s wedding to Simba Chikore early this year.

The mega wedding was held at the First’s Family’s residence opposite Pazarangu’s house.

The State alleges that on May 22 and 23 last year, Pazarangu’s dogs strayed into President Mugabe’s residence where they killed a buck. When an officer on duty saw the dogs devouring the animal, they ran away into Pazarangu’s homestead. Officials from the National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority later identified the dogs as the ones they had shot at the previous year.

When he was summoned to appear in court last week, Pazarangu kept it a secret to his family which only knew about the case when it was splashed in newspapers.

“I didn’t want my family to be traumatised. Also, I didn’t want the story to come out because it embarrasses the President,” he said.

Pazarangu said when he moved into Borrowdale Brooke, tyres on his three cars were stolen one night. When he replaced the tyres and parked his cars closer to the house, thieves pounced again and stole the tyres.

“It was at that point that I started keeping the dogs,” said the man born in Pazarangu Street in Mbare. The street was named after his father, Patrick Michael Pazarangu, the former post master during the federation of Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and Nyasaland (Malawi).

Patrick Michael was awarded the Member of the order of the British Empire given to an individual for a significant achievement or outstanding service to the community.