"Marange villagers stage sponsored demo against ZCDC", 23 April 2018

Scores of villagers from Marange today staged...demonstration against Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC), which they accuse of failing to create jobs and eradicate poverty in the area among other issues. The villagers, who claimed to be poor but carried banners made from expensive material, demanded an explanation on the fate of the purported $15 billion generated from diamonds that reportedly went missing. However, they failed to gain entrance into the company premises after the intervention of police...Contacted for comment, ZCDC head of public relations, Mr Sugar Chagonda said the demos were politically motivated fingering opposition parties for fuelling them. “We believe they are rented crowds sponsored by opposition political parties to discredit the good works we have done for the community. We have done a lot of community social responsibility programmes such construction of roads, rehabilitation of clinics, schools, supporting tillage programmes and drilling boreholes. These people were used to receiving food handouts from Mbada Diamonds, which was more of a solution for immediate concerns yet what we are doing is something they will benefit from way into the future. We will however go to the ground to establish how it can be solved,” added Mr Chagonda...