Mugabe denies links to SA mansion, bunkerBy KITSEPILE NYATHI in Harare | Monday, June 18   2012 at  13:48

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has denied reports that he is building a luxurious mansion with an underground bunker in neighbouring South Africa.

According to weekend reports, the KwaDukuza municipality in South Africa obtained a court order to stop the Zimbabwean ruler’s former personal pilot from constructing the R200 million mansion citing environmental concerns.

Retired Air Vice Marshal Robert Mhlanga was rumoured to be building the mansion on be behalf of President Mugabe.

A private newspaper, The Standard speculated that the Zimbabwean ruler wanted to use it as a “bolt hole.”

Mining diamonds

But President Mugabe’s spokesperson Mr George Charamba dismissed the reports.

“There is no substance to that,” he told the paper. “The only relationship between them (President Mugabe and (Mr Mhlanga) is the name Robert and that they are Zimbabweans.”

Mr Mhlanga is chairman of one of the companies mining diamonds in the controversial Marange area in Zimbabwe.

He was also a prosecution witness in the 2003 treason trial of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

In the past, President Mugabe has dismissed allegations that he plans to escape from Zimbabwe in the event that he is dislodged from power.

Never lose

Meanwhile, Zimbabwean First Lady Grace Mugabe says her husband’s party would never lose an election.
She was responding to a question from a state media journalist on whether she was not afraid that President Mugabe would lose this year’s election.
“I do not think that it will ever happen that Zanu PF will lose this election,” she said.
“I don’t think it will. Never!”
In 2008, Mrs Mugabe was forced to