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Zanu PF leaders snub Shamu

Politics
SENIOR Zanu PF leaders in Bulawayo reportedly snubbed the party’s national commissar Webster Shamu on Saturday after he arrived late for a scheduled meeting with the provincial leadership.

SENIOR Zanu PF leaders in Bulawayo reportedly snubbed the party’s national commissar Webster Shamu on Saturday after he arrived late for a scheduled meeting with the provincial leadership.

NDUDUZO TSHUMA

Shamu, who is on a tour of the provinces, was expected to meet his party’s Bulawayo leaders at 2pm from another meeting in Matabeleland North, but could not make it on time.

Insiders said a message was sent around 3pm informing them that Shamu had been delayed and the meeting had been rescheduled to 4pm, but most members of the provincial executive would have none of it.

“The central committee members and most of the politburo members left Davies Hall (the party’s provincial headquarters) complaining that they could not wait any longer.

They accused Shamu of disrespecting them and left,” a party insider told our Bulawayo Bureau “They had come for the meeting at 2pm, but Shamu sent a message that he was still in Lupane at 3pm and suggested that the meeting be postponed to 4pm.

“This did not go down well with senior party members and some openly voiced their disgruntlement saying they could not be made to wait like little children and left.”

The sources said when Shamu finally arrived, he only found the provincial chairperson Callistus Ndlovu, provincial political head Sikhanyiso Ndlovu and a few other party officials.

Contacted for comment, provincial chairperson Ndlovu said party leaders did not snub Shamu, blaming the postponement of the meeting on communication breakdown.

“The meeting was supposed to be at 2pm, but Shamu then sent a message that we postpone the meeting to 4pm. The person given the message, whom we do not know, delayed relaying it (to us),” Ndlovu said.

“By the time that message got to us, it was close to 4pm and some people had gone.”

It could not, however, be established when the meeting will be held. Shamu addressed the Matabeleland South provincial structures yesterday and told the provincial leadership that Zanu PF would complete its digitalisation drive that would see the production of electronic party cards to ensure transparency within structures by year end.

The digitalisation system was introduced after Zanu PF dissolved its district co-ordinating committees countrywide after the politburo felt some senior party leaders were abusing these structures to further their political ambitions.