MIDLANDS Provincial Affairs minister Larry Mavima was on Saturday forced to flee an angry Zanu PF mob that was protesting against alleged rigging of the ruling party’s primary elections in the Gokwe-Chireya constituency.
Mavhima, who was being accompanied by politburo member
Daniel Mackenzie Ncube, had told the crowd gathered at Chief Chireya’s
homestead that he was sent by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to preach
reconciliation after primary polls held in March heavily divided people in the
area.
The meeting was meant to cool tempers in the constituency
after chaotic primary polls that saw Torerai Moyo being announced the winner
despite losing to Jeremiah Ndukulani by 54 votes, according to the ward command
centre results leaked to NewsDay.
The minister, who is also Zanu PF chairperson for Midlands,
was not given a chance to address the crowd despite repeated pleas from Chief
Chireya.
He was forced to leave in a huff.
Zanu PF supporters in the constituency accused Local
Government minister July Moyo and former State Security minister Owen “Mudha”
Ncube of working with the Central Intelligence Organisation-linked Forever
Associates Zimbabwe to rig the internal party polls in favour of Moyo.
Moyo and Mudha did not attend the meeting where Mavima
intended to ask for forgiveness from Zanu PF supporters while drumming up
support for Moyo.
All hell broke loose the moment Chief Chireya introduced
Moyo as parliamentary candidate.
“When you see him (Mavima), you see the President, when you
talk to him, you talk to the President. So I am imploring you to respect and
listen to him,” Chief Chireya said.
“We are all in Zanu PF and I know the committed that I
invited are well-behaved. Booing each other happens, but at this party meeting,
we came to hear what the minister has to say.
“I am the one who invited him to address you. He came here
to see the chief, but I asked him to address my people. So why are you booing
him before he finishes addressing you?”
However, the chief’s plea seemed to fuel party members’
anger.
After being forced to abandon his address to allow Chief
Chireya to calm the crowd, Mavima said: “I have been sent by the President, I
will not add or subtract anything. I thank you for finally agreeing to listen.”
But before he went further, the crowd heckled him and the
boos got louder. The minister and his entourage immediately left the chief’s
homestead.
Zanu PF has been struggling to assemble people for campaign
meetings in the Midlands after the chaotic primary polls.
A fortnight ago, another Zanu PF candidate in Gokwe, Flora
Buka, who walloped Justice Mayor Wadyajena in the primaries, addressed a paltry
crowd of 17 people before ordering traditional leaders to bring their subjects
for another meeting, which she said would be addressed by the party’s national
commissar Mike Bimha.
In a bid to douse post-primaries fire, Zanu PF youth league
secretary Tino Machakaire on Saturday pleaded with feuding party factions to
unite ahead of the August polls.
The infighting, that has rocked the ruling party, saw
Machakaire visiting Mashonaland West province.
Machakaire, while addressing a Zanu PF youth inter-district
meeting in Zvimba South, preached peace and unity.
“Now that the primary elections are over, those that won
and the ones who didn’t make it, it’s time to unite towards the goal to support
President Mnangagwa in the upcoming harmonised elections for we are one
people,” Machakaire said.
He was accompanied by his deputy John Paradza despite
recent reports of bad blood between the two.
Zvimba South legislator Phillip Chiyangwa pleaded with
party supporters to support Dexter Malinganisa who clobbered him in the
primaries.
Mashonaland West Provincial Affairs and Devolution
minister, Mary Mliswa-Chikoka, Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, and Central
Committee member Mike Chimombe also attended the meeting.
Last week, Zanu PF deployed party secretary for security
Lovemore Matuke to douse rising tensions across the country.
The recent ban on the use of social media platforms over
allegations of fanning divisions has also torched a storm within the ruling
Zanu PF party structures ahead of the harmonised elections.
The Zanu PF national security department last week directed
all provinces to ban the use of WhatsApp and other social media platforms by
its supporters. Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment