DIVISIONS have rocked the ruling Zanu PF party over its
impending district co-ordinating committee (DCC) elections amid reports of
plots by party bigwigs to impose candidates as internal succession wars
thicken.
The party disbanded the DCCs in 2012 after it emerged that
they had become favourite hunting grounds for then Vice-President Joice Mujuru
and Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa who were jostling to succeed the now
late former President Robert Mugabe.
After romping to power through a military-assisted coup in
November 2017, Mnangagwa immediately re-instated the DCCs, with elections for
the lower tier of the Zanu PF power structures scheduled to start soon.
However, fierce fights over control of the structures have
re-emerged amid reports that faction leaders were back in the trenches trying
to sway votes in favour of candidates deemed loyal to either Mnangagwa or his
deputy Constantino Chiwenga who is said to be angling to take over as party
leader.
On Saturday, party commissar Victor Matemadanda singled out
Mashonaland West, Manicaland, Mashonaland East and Midlands provinces as
trouble spots.
“All the people who sat down and did shortlisting of
candidates, those (candidates) are going to be disqualified. What makes you
want to have your own sub-structure? The structure must be one which reports to
the President. Why do you think you must have a structure that is loyal to
you?” he asked rhetorically.
“I heard that in Mashonaland West, around Patchway area,
there was a caucus meeting to shortlist candidates for DCC and say so and so
will be chairperson, secretary etc… that is nonsense. There is nothing like
that. We are going to do proper elections there.”
“In Chipinge, I heard that is what was happening also. In
Mashonaland East, I heard there was a district which was doing that again. Let
me tell them that they will achieve nothing. We want to have a structure of the
party not of an individual. Here in Midlands, the same problem had started, but
I shall not mention names,” an irate Matemadanda said.
According to the Zanu PF constitution, there are 60 rural
DCCs that must be constituted and 29 in urban areas.
When fully constituted, the DCCs form part of the Zanu PF
congress, which is the supreme decision-making body mandated to elect the party
president.
Accordingly, whoever controls DCCs has greater potential of
sustaining power in Zanu PF. Newsday
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