Bigwigs fret as Mugabe returns

Source: Bigwigs fret as Mugabe returns – DailyNews Live

Bridget Mananavire      27 May 2017

HARARE – All eyes are on President Robert Mugabe on his return from
Mexico, as the wily nonagenarian bids to douse, once and for all, the
raging and worsening tribal, factional and succession wars consuming his
ruling Zanu PF.

Well-placed sources told the Daily News yesterday that “the desperation
and stress” among many party heavyweights had reached unsustainable levels
that “something has to give soon”.

“It’s panic stations all round in many quarters and unfortunately only one
man, Gushungo (Mugabe), can take away the chefs’ (senior party officials’)
pain.

“If you have been following social media closely over the past few days,
particularly accounts linked to some officials and their lackeys who are
active on Twitter and WhatsApp for example, the panic and desperation will
not have escaped you,” one of the sources said.

This comes after Zanu PF’s mindless bloodletting witnessed an
unprecedented orgy of intra-party violence in Bulawayo earlier this week.

Mugabe – who spent a week in Mexico attending an obscure conference on
climate together with the ruling party’s under-fire national political
commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere – returned home yesterday amid the former
liberation movement’s worsening infighting which analysts say is reaching
a tipping point.

Another insider told the Daily News yesterday that Zanu PF was likely to
have its delayed politburo meeting this coming week, where Mugabe was
expected to try and deal decisively with the ruling party’s deepening
ructions – including the chaos in the influential women’s league, the
disputed Masvingo leadership election, the Bulawayo violence and the
Kasukuwere affair.

University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer, Eldred Masunungure,
said there was no doubt that Mugabe was now under tremendous pressure to
“crack the whip” in the burning former liberation movement.

“The number one issue he has to deal with now is that of his national
political commissar. And it is possible that their trip together to Mexico
may have given Kasukuwere a chance to talk to Mugabe one on one, and thus
give him a chance to clear his name.

“But whether or not that happened, Mugabe still has to solve the issue
formally, as there has been a lot of restlessness and there is therefore
that need for a decisive voice from him.

“The violence that rocked Bulawayo is an extension of the same Kasukuwere
issue … amid the context that nine out of 10 provinces have endorsed a
vote of no confidence against him. So, Mugabe will need to deal with all
this,” Masunugure told the Daily News.

Another political analyst, Maxwell Saungweme, also said Mugabe would need
to deal with the Kasukuwere issue as soon as possible, to avoid a complete
implosion of the ruling party.

“He needs to deal decisively with the Kasukuwere issue to avoid another
split of Zanu PF.  The issue has been causing Zanu PF to implode, and it
needs his attention,” Saungweme said.

Kasukuwere has been fighting to save his political career over the past
few weeks, with angry Zanu PF supporters pushing for his ouster from both
his party and government positions, over a raft of charges which include
allegedly plotting to topple Mugabe from power.

A probe team tasked to investigate the allegations against Kasukuwere has
since submitted its findings to Mugabe.

Kasukuwere also stands accused by his party enemies of stoking tension in
the deeply-divided ruling party, after he barred an ex-intelligence
operative, Pearson Mbalekwa, from participating in the impending
Chiwundura by-election.

The move has seen his rivals calling for decisive action to be taken
against him, with voluble war veterans’ leader and former Cabinet
minister, Christopher Mutsvangwa, accusing Kasukuwere of “personalising”
Zanu PF.

Mutsvangwa said the Mbalekwa decision had been taken in an unprocedural
manner, adding that Kasukuwere was “now behaving like the owner of Zanu
PF”.

“That is (Mbalekwa decision) an abuse of power and personalisation of Zanu
PF by a clueless and disorderly G40 (Generation 40),” Mutsvangwa said
referring to the Zanu PF faction which is rabidly opposed to Vice
President Emmerson Mnangagwa succeeding Mugabe.

“Why does Tyson (Kasukuwere’s nickname) also issue a statement from a
foreign country (he is in Mexico with Mugabe)?  There ought to be an
acting PC (political commissar).

“Kufa kwemujoni company haivharwi (Work does not stop because the boss is
not there or has died).

“Even the president does not do that. He leaves behind an acting president
when he travels. For security and protocol, pronouncements of State have
to be issued from the seat of power. What if Kasukuwere is kidnapped in a
foreign land and is under duress?

“Crass ignorance and compulsive dictatorial proclivity to the abuse of
State power is the hallmark of G40,” added the garrulous Mutsvangwa.

Apart from having to deal with Kasukuwere’s saga, Mugabe is expected to
deal with the unprecedented intra-party violence which rocked Bulawayo
last weekend, where rival factions engaged in bloody skirmishes which led
to the cancellation of a provincial coordinating committee (PCC) meeting
at Davies Hall.

Mugabe is also expected to deal with the contested results of the Masvingo
provincial chairmanship election, which was comprehensively won by an
alleged Team Lacoste candidate, Ezra Chadzamira – who walloped Mutero
Masanganise who had pulled out from the mini internal plebiscite days
before polling, citing a number of alleged irregularities.

Masanganise – who is linked to the G40 faction- pulled out of the Masvingo
poll re-run arguing that it was illegal.

Mugabe and the politburo had nullified the results from the initial
regional poll, which was won by Chadzamira – amid similar claims of
irregularities, including people not voting in some districts.

Chadzamira, who is the former regional chairperson and an alleged
Mnangagwa backer, crushed Masanganise then – polling 12 393 votes against
his opponent’s 4 888, amid allegations of rigging and failure by people in
Mwenezi and some parts of Chiredzi to vote.

Observers have also consistently said Mugabe’s failure to resolve Zanu
PF’s thorny succession riddle is fuelling the ruling party’s deadly
infighting, which is worsening by the day.

The 93-year-old has studiously refused to name a successor, insisting that
the party’s congress has that mandate: to choose a person of their own
choice.