The Zimbabwean government has cleared the air on circumstances surrounding the arrest and detention of David Hundeyin, an outspoken Nigerian investigative journalist.
The government on Thursday, July 20, through its permanent secretary in the information, publicity, and broadcasting service, Nick Mangwana, explained that it was necessary to clarify why he was arrested and detained so it won’t affect how its citizens are treated back in Nigeria.
According to a tweet by Mangwana on Thursday, Hundeyin was running away from being persecuted in his home country.
He noted that the Zimbabwean government had no business making Hundeyin’s detention public, but since he had put it out there without giving full details, it was necessary to make clarifications.
Mangwana tweeted:
“Since he has chosen to put all his issues out without making full disclosure, it forces us to give details we would have preferred not. But we realize this may affect how Zimbabweans are treated when they visit Nigeria, so we are going to give the information here.
“David came with Ghanaian Refuge papers claiming he was a Nigerian who was a refugee from his home country. His country of Asylum is Ghana after claiming to be running away from persecution in Nigeria. People in this category certainly need Visas to enter Zimbabwe.
“He wasn’t coming in to work as a journalist. He said he was just coming to visit but without getting a Visa in Ghana first. Other parts of his story were also unsatisfactory to the immigration authorities. He was considered not a candidate for entry into Zimbabwe.”
