via Grace youths block Midzi November 8, 2014
ZANU PF youths loyal to Grace Mugabe yesterday besieged the Harare provincial offices and blocked chairman Amos Midzi from addressing a Press conference amid threats of violence and “war” on anyone deemed opposed to the First Family.
Scores of youths, most of them visibly drunk, where bussed from several parts of Harare and from as far as Epworth, Ruwa, Chitungwiza and Norton to stop Midzi’s address after hearing word that the embattled chairman had called for a Press conference.
NewsDay witnessed first-hand the bussing of youths from Zanu PF office in Zengeza 4 in four kombis and briefly stopped at a nearby shopping centre where they bought beer before continuing on their mission to the party’s office in the city centre.
At the provincial offices, the youths joined dozens of their colleagues in singing and denouncing Vice-President Joice Mujuru, Midzi and other provincial leaders who they accused of plotting against President Robert Mugabe ahead of the party’s elective congress next month.
Others protested by holding roots from small plants and singing “Tadzura Midzi” (We have plucked out the roots), playing on the Shona word for roots “midzi”.
But a Press statement seen by NewsDay which Midzi was supposed to read out stated that attempts to suspend him were null and void and he remained defiant claiming to be still in charge of the province.
Midzi, in that statement, said there was intimidation by “elements” abusing their official positions forcing and coercing people into signing petitions backing the ouster of Midzi.
“We also want to say that it has come to our notice that some of the members who are said to have signed the ‘vote of no confidence’ did so out of fear. We want to make a point that some of the signatures are fraudulent, and we are demanding that we be supplied with the original list of names and the signatures,” Midzi wrote.
He described as false claims that constitutional provisions were not being adhered to in running the affairs of the province.
“As we move forward, we want to reiterate that we are always guided by the principles of the party and the exemplary leadership of our First Secretary and President, His Excellency Cde RG Mugabe, and in this regard, we are committed unshakably to building the party. The party has always condemned factionalism at whatever level. It is untrue that this province is run along factional lines, despite the allegations raised yesterday [Friday].”
Midzi’s defiance yesterday added to the circus in the Zanu PF internal fighting as it came 24 hours after officials aligned to Harare provincial youth chairperson Godwin Gomwe had suspended Midzi at the same time Midzi’s loyalists had suspended Gomwe.
The main fight for Midzi and his team is to push for Vice-President Joice Mujuru to retain her post at the December congress while Gomwe and his colleagues are pushing for Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa to take up the post.
Anti-Mujuru songs were being chanted yesterday at the party provincial offices while vehicles with Grace’s posters pasted on them were parked outside.
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