By Chantelle Muzanenhamo
Harare — Former cabinet minister and prominent exiled politician Professor Jonathan Moyo has publicly dismissed circulating rumours claiming he has quietly returned to Zimbabwe.
The speculation gained momentum following the recent return of Walter Mzembi, a close ally of Moyo and fellow G40 member, who had been living abroad since 2018.
Mzembi’s return to Zimbabwe marked his first visit since leaving during a corruption trial, with reports suggesting he sought cancer treatment in South Africa. However, shortly after his arrival, Mzembi was reportedly arrested on outstanding warrants, fueling speculation about the status of other high-profile exiles, including Moyo and Saviour Kasukuwere.
The rumours intensified when Zanu PF politician Killer Zivhu claimed on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that Jonathan Moyo had arrived in Bulawayo on Friday evening, June 20, 2025.
Zivhu posted, “Safe arrival! He landed in Bulawayo yesterday evening,” sparking immediate online debate and suspicion among followers.
In an attempt to verify the claim, some users turned to Grok, an AI chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s X, for clarification. Grok analyzed the available evidence, including Zivhu’s post and a reverse image search of the photo accompanying the claim.
The AI responded that “the claim appears likely true based on available evidence,” noting that the image matched Moyo’s likeness and no contradictory evidence had surfaced. However, Grok emphasized that official confirmation was still lacking, and some skepticism was warranted given Moyo’s known exile status.
“The claim that Jonathan Moyo was in Bulawayo on June 20, 2025, appears likely true based on available evidence,” Grok stated.
Despite the AI’s analysis, Jonathan Moyo was quick to dismiss the claims. Instead of directly addressing Zivhu’s post, Moyo took to social media to criticize Grok’s assessment.
He warned the AI about blindly believing in unverified information and urged it to adopt a more cautious approach when handling politically sensitive claims.
“But @grok, learn not to treat nonsense as ‘available evidence’; when you do a reverse image search, find out when or where else the image first appeared; and learn to say ‘I don’t know’. Otherwise, you risk ruining your reputation as fast as has done your founder, @elonmusk!” Moyo wrote.