VICE-PRESIDENT Constantino Chiwenga yesterday abandoned a
clan-up campaign scheduled for Mvurwi after only a handful of party officials
turned up, leading to a bitter meeting of the Zanu PF provincial officials.
Chiwenga then assigned minister of Agriculture Perrance
Shiri to stand in for him after only a few Members of Parliament, councillors,
Zanu PF officials and government workers turned up for the clean-up exercise.
To explain Chiwenga’s absence, Shiri told the officials
gathered at Mvurwi High School that Chiwenga had returned to Harare to attend
to a “special assignment”.
“Vice-President was called back to Harare on his way here
and he has assigned me to deliver his speech on his behalf,” Shiri said.
But the provincial leadership called for an emergency
Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC) meeting at Umvukwes Primary School soon
after Shiri’s address to iron out squabbles between the province’s Zanu PF MPs
and war veterans.
The meeting was so tense that security details and media
were ordered out as tempers flared. But that was not before a NewsDay staffer
was forced by Zanu PF chairperson for Mashonaland Central province Kazembe
Kazembe to stand before the PCC and explain a story published by the newspaper
about the tiff between MPs and war veterans in the province which was affecting
the party’s mobilisation efforts.
The story alleged a rift between the liberation war
fighters and MPs in the area who they accused of abusing food donated to the province
to advance personal interests.
Provincial war veterans leader Sam Parirenyatwa and his
executive wrere also chucked out of the meeting.
“Since we are all here, l thought it is wise to meet and
address issues coming from the newspaper that we are sabotaging the President,
me included,” Kazembe said.
“We should not be emotional about it; let us talk about the
issue. I am being advised that the reporter who covered this story is in here.
What is happening to our security, Simbarashe Sithole please stand up and tell
us if your story is true because you are here by default,” he added.
The disgruntled war veterans accuse Kazembe of failing to
mobilise crowds for the party’s rallies.
In 2018, Mnangagwa aborted a rally in Bindura after only a
handful of people attended, while his wife had a run-in with party executives
after a few people turned up for her family fun day at Chipadze Stadium in October
last year.
“This is clear Kazembe is failing to mobilise people, hence
the presidium is snubbing us now and again due to poor attendance, people do
not want the truth to be told that is why they are chasing us away from their
PCC meeting,” one veteran said.
But the MPs hit back, charging that the war veterans were
misguided and accused them instead of sabotaging Mnangagwa.
“We gave the President all the seats and what the war
veterans are doing is very wrong to accuse us of sabotaging the President. This
rift will not end, we will continue fighting until we die,” said a legislator
who refused to be named. Newsday
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