ZANU-PF has distanced itself from a statement issued by its director of information Cde Tafadzwa Mugwadi threatening to expose South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC)’s alleged sinister agenda behind its decision to send a delegation to Zimbabwe last year.
The ANC delegation met Zanu-PF in September last year in Harare
to discuss matters of mutual interest.
The meeting between the two sister parties was a bilateral
engagement of former liberation movements requested by the national executive
council (NEC) of the ANC to exchange notes on matters affecting the region
including clearing the unfounded assertions of a crisis in Zimbabwe.
Zanu-PF national spokesperson Ambassador Simon Khaya Moyo
said Cde Mugwadi’s statement does not in any way reflect the position of the
party. He said Zimbabwe and South Africa share a common liberation history,
culture and destiny.
Posting on his Twitter account, Cde Mugwadi threatened to
expose the ANC’s alleged sinister agenda behind its delegation’s trip to
Zimbabwe last year. The threat was an angry reaction to what Cde Mugwadi
described as hostile reportage against Zanu-PF by the South African Broadcasting
Corporation (SABC)’s foreign editor Sophie Mokoena.
“If the ANC and SABC news do not restrain and rein in
Sophie Mokoena, whose fake news reporting and tweeting directed only at
undermining a neighbouring country and President Mnangagwa for no apparent
reason, I will seek permission to leak a bombshell on why the ANC delegation
came,” Cde Mugwadi tweeted.
In an interview with the SABC on Saturday, President Cyril
Ramaphosa dared Cde Mugwadi to come out with his “bombshell” and reveal the
“real reason” which he claimed was behind his party’s visit to Zimbabwe last
year.
Ambassador Khaya Moyo said Cde Mugwadi issued the statement
without authorisation from the party hence it should be dismissed with
contempt.
“A statement issued by the Zanu-PF director of information
Cde Tafadzwa Mugwadi on the visit last year by the ANC delegation to meet with
Zanu-PF on matters of mutual interest does not in any way reflect the position
of Zanu-PF. It (the statement) was issued without authorisation and must be
dismissed with contempt,” said Ambassador Khaya Moyo in a statement yesterday.
“The ANC of South Africa and Zanu-PF enjoy excellent and
fraternal relations dating back to the days of our liberation struggle and
continue blossoming up to this day. To suggest that the ANC delegation came to
Zimbabwe with a hidden agenda is compound mischief, uninformed, unacceptable
and unpatriotic.”
Ambassador Khaya Moyo said necessary measures would be
taken concerning the issue. “A communique was issued on the constructive
two-day meeting by the two fraternal parties and indeed these meetings will
continue in the future. Nothing was amiss and necessary measures will be taken
by Zanu-PF concerning those involved to this matter,” he said.
“The President and First Secretary of Zanu-PF Cde ED
Mnangagwa, the President of the ANC Cde CM Ramaphosa called each other in high
esteem and no one should attempt to soil this fraternal relationship. We are
one people sharing a common liberation history, culture and destiny.”
President Ramaphosa told the SABC that the ANC sent its
delegation to Zimbabwe to understand the situation in the country with a view
to help. “We sent a delegation as the ANC to Zimbabwe because Zanu-PF is a
sister party to us, we have a deep and strong base with Zanu-PF and it was one
to express concern and find out what was happening and to see the extent to
which we can either be supportive and fully understand precisely what was
happening,” he said.
“I don’t know what the representative of Zanu-PF was
talking about and I am sure that he will be willing to share all that with the
ANC and all of us”.
President Ramaphosa said as far as he was concerned, there
was absolutely nothing amiss and nothing to hide.
“At government level, I appointed three envoys who went to
Zimbabwe and we continue to interact with Zimbabwe and I am also in contact
with President Mnangagwa on an ongoing basis,” he said. Chronicle
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