The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZTNLWVA) chairperson, Andreas Ethan Mathibela, has accused the government and ruling Zanu PF party of hastily organising an elective congress for the association to remove his executive and install their preferred leadership.
Mathibela claimed that since he declared ZNLWVA a
non-partisan body, the ruling party felt threatened and wanted him removed.
This comes at a time when ZNLWVA is divided, with two other
factions led by Christopher Mutsvangwa and Moffat Marashwa vying for
leadership. Mutsvangwa headed the association for ten years, with the last
congress held in Masvingo in 2013, before Mathibela was chosen at the
extraordinary congress in October last year, citing Mutsvangwa’s failure to
represent veterans’ interests.
News of a pending congress on July 12, 2024, was announced
three weeks ago by Zanu PF Secretary for War Veterans, Ex-Political Prisoners,
Detainees and Restrictees, Douglas Mahiya, at a press briefing also attended by
the Minister of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs, Monica Mavhunga,
and Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, July Moyo in Harare.
However, the courts halted the congress, ruling that
Mahiya, Mavhunga, and Moyo lacked the locus standi to call for the
association’s elective congress. This followed Marashwa’s court action to
interdict the three officials.
Addressing journalists at the Bulawayo Media Centre last
Friday, Mathibela said the war vets minister and the minister of labour, in
collaboration with the Zanu PF war vets league, wanted to hasten the congress
to install their favoured leadership.
“I saw a situation where it was set to benefit a few, a
preferred outfit they wanted, not one led by Mathibela, seen as a threat,” he
said, noting that when his executive declared it was non-partisan, it caused
unease among the powers that be.
“They forget that outside of the (Private Voluntary
Organisation) PVO, (which is how ZNLWVA is registered) we are members of the
ruling party holding party cards. But as a matter of principle and based on the
PVO’s standing constitution, we cannot engage in partisan politics but focus
more on welfare issues.”
Mathibela stated that three weeks ago, he was invited by
Mavhunga and Moyo—represented by Lovemore Matuke—to Mavhunga’s office to
discuss the association’s divisions.
“We agreed there are divisions and told them the divisions
emanate from politicians,” he said.
According to Mathibela, Marashwa brought a delegation of 20
while Mutsvangwa was absent.
Mathibela said his delegation was uncomfortable with
Mahiya’s presence at the meeting, who sat at the high table with the cabinet
ministers.
“We registered our apprehension about Mahiya’s presence,”
said the war vets leader.
Mathibela said when Mavhunga was outlining the roadmap for
uniting the veterans under this pending congress, Marashwa and his group left,
saying “they would not be part of a charade.”
“The minister said the electoral college would be conducted
at the district and provincial level, supervised by ministry of labor officials
and individuals from Zanu PF. We were also apprehensive about that,” he said.
“I asked if there was a budget for the congress. The
minister said they didn’t have one. I said when we conducted the formal
extraordinary congress on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the executive I
lead, the money came from ourselves.”
Mathibela said they want the opportunity to prepare
adequately.
“We know we have a lot of grassroots support but the timing
is too short for us to prepare. They understood and said they would caucus
among themselves,” he said.
“Surprisingly, days later, Mahiya issued a communique that
the congress would go ahead on July 12. As much as we had differences with the
Marashwa faction, they quickly interdicted Mahiya and the two ministers because
they had no locus standi.”
Mathibela said there was no sense in hastening these
elections.
“A one or two-day event will not solve the welfare of
veterans; we have held conferences before, and they yielded nothing,” said the
war vets leader.
He also questioned why the central government and the
ruling party were “so anxious and desirous of hastening to hold a congress” at
this particular time.
“They knew Mathibela’s outfit is not well-resourced,”
Mathibela said, citing a letter from Zanu PF Secretary General Obert Mpofu that
indicated his executive was not loyal to the ruling party.
“The letter was not addressed to us, but we stumbled upon
it, stating that Mutsvangwa and Marashwa’s factions have openly declared their
affiliation to the ruling party, making themselves appear more loyal to the
party than everyone else,” which Mathibela said is against the PVO’s
constitution.
“Obviously, they were constantly seeking favor from the
party’s leadership and the country’s president.”
The war vets leader claimed it was at these secret meetings
where his executive was demonized.
“They would say Mathibela is anti-establishment, yet the
real issue is not who leads the PVO but what the PVO can do for the ordinary
veterans,” he said. CITE
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