Tshinga Dube fumes over war vets splinter group rants

War Veterans minister Tshinga Dube has come out guns blazing at a breakaway faction of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans’ Association (ZNLWVA), led by Manicaland Provincial Affairs minister Mandi Chimene, saying it has no mandate to question his decisions.

Source: Tshinga Dube fumes over war vets splinter group rants – NewsDay Zimbabwe October 5, 2016

BY XOLISANI NCUBE

In a statement, Dube — who had been accused by Chimene’s deputy, George Mlala, of overstepping his mandate and seeking to impose leadership of the association — said the splinter group should not prescribe what he does as he was an appointee of President Robert Mugabe, not theirs.

“I respect George Mlala like any other war veteran. However, he has to realise that I am an appointee of His Excellency the President. When one is appointed, one is given terms of reference for his duties,” Dube said.

“I am carrying out my duties as per the mandate I was given when I was appointed a minister.”

Mlala had said Dube should stop meddling in the affairs of the association and allow members to choose their new executive to replace the rival Christopher Mutsvangwa-led executive committee which has fallen out of favour with Zanu PF.

But Dube said if Mlala wants him to resign or to do what he wants, he must not forget that as all he was doing, he was doing it to the satisfaction of his boss — Mugabe.

“By the way, I do not know in which capacity he (Mlala) raises these issues. I am told he appointed himself as vice-chair of a splinter group whose title I have yet to know,” Dube said.

The fight for control of the war veterans’ movement has caused fissures within government and Zanu PF with some party officials aligning themselves to the Mlala group while others have sided with the Mutsvangwa camp.

The High Court issued an interim order stopping Chimene and her group from acting as the executive leadership of the ZNLWVA. But the order has not been implemented as Chimene’s camp have gone ahead setting up parallel war veterans structures in six of the country’s 10 provinces in preparation for an elective national congress.

On the other hand, the Mutsvangwa camp has scoffed at the purported restructuring exercise, saying the High Court barred Chimene from masquerading as leader of war veterans.