THE United Kingdom (UK) has dissociated itself from a letter allegedly written by their former Defence minister Geoffrey William Hoon, which fingers MDC vice president Tendai Biti and treasurer David Coltart for helping the UK draft the European country’s document on sanctions against Zimbabwe.
The letter, dated November 12, 2001 and has been circulating on social media, also stated that the MDC would never get into power once they failed to win the 2005 elections.
The UK embassy in Harare told the Daily News on Sunday that their government had nothing to do with the letter.”It has been brought to our attention that a photo is being shared online pretending to show a UK government document from 2001. This document is a fake and should be dismissed as such,” the embassy said.
“If the MDC does not win the next presidential election or 2005 parliamentary elections, there will be no prospect of getting into power at any other time as Zanu-PF will get even tougher with the opposition.
“I have received communication from … Morgan Tsvangirai’s party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and these are my recommendations. That we immediately disengage (the late former President Robert) Mugabe’s government and lobby the EU to take a common position on sanctions. High Commissioner Brian Donnelly has met with … Tsvangirai, Tendai Laxton Biti, and David Coltart, the latter two are lawyers who are assisting in the drafting of the sanctions document and are giving great insights on what our role should be in the upcoming 2002 presidential elections.
“We should mobilise the civic movement in the country for civil disobedience if Mr Mugabe wins in the 2002 presidential elections.”
However, Biti and Coltart dismissed the allegations, blaming Zanu-PF supporters for conjuring up and circulating the fake letter.
“The regime has gone absolutely bonkers & desperate. Fake news and fake letters have now become the new norm. This is Emmerson writ large. Over the years he has cut his teeth manufacturing evidence, planting arms, smearing opponents. He is crude, ruthless but structurally dull,” Biti said.
Coltart wrote on his Twitter account that the letter is the work of their enemies.
“The attached ‘letter’ has been put out by Zanu-PF trolls, otherwise known in Zimbabwe as Varakashi. The entire letter is fake and its allegations are also baseless and false. That people would go to such extraordinary lengths to fabricate such nonsense shows their desperation,” Coltart said.
