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3 more Zanu PF chefs booted out

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THREE more Zanu PF provincial chairpersons believed to be aligned to a faction led by Vice-President Joice Mujuru have been booted out of office by party youths and war veterans yesterday as faction fights moved a gear up ahead of next month’s elective congress.

THREE more Zanu PF provincial chairpersons believed to be aligned to a faction led by Vice-President Joice Mujuru have been booted out of office by party youths and war veterans yesterday as faction fights moved a gear up ahead of next month’s elective congress.

PAIDAMOYO MUZULU/NUNURAI JENA

These are Ray Kaukonde (Mashonaland East), Andrew Langa (Matabeleland South) and Callistus Ndlovu (Bulawayo).

The trio was shown the exit door for allegedly decampaigning the First Lady Grace Mugabe and fanning factionalism. They join a growing list of other bigwigs that have fallen by the wayside in the past few days over similar charges.

These include Temba Mliswa (Mashonaland West), Killian Gwanetsa (Masvingo), Amos Midzi (Harare) and Jason Machaya (Midlands). Zanu PF national spokesperson Rugare Gumbo yesterday confirmed the latest purge targeting Mujuru loyalists and described the development as a sign of gross indiscipline.

“As the situation stands there is no order and discipline that is why you find this happening,” Gumbo said.

The Mujuru faction is reportedly locked in a fierce fight with a rival faction led by Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa in a battle to succeed President Robert Mugabe who turns 91 next February.

In Marondera, the placard-waving demonstrators brought business in the sleepy town to a halt after they arrived in a convoy of 11 “hired” CMED, Zupco and Pioneer buses, singing and chanting slogans denouncing Kaukonde and his provincial executive.

The latest demonstration came hardly a week after a group of war veterans stormed the Zanu PF Marondera offices to press Kaukonde to step down for, among other allegations, being sympathetic to Mujuru and being disrespectful of the First Family.

Kaukonde’s woes started last month when Grace publicly accused him of fanning factionalism and mobilising party youths to heckle her during one of her campaign rallies in the province. Party sources said the entire provincial executive and PCC were linked to the Mujuru camp, hence their refusal to pass a vote-of-no-confidence on Kaukonde.

Spokesperson for the war veterans, Chrispen Mashayamombe said the decision to dissolve the executive was unanimously agreed by representatives of all the districts.

An interim 18-member committee led by Patrick Makombe has been set up to run the affairs of the province until a new executive has been put in place.

Makombe and his deputy Tangai Hove said they had been mandated to come up with structures that will represent the province at the Zanu PF congress to in December.

Other leaders of the interim committee are Lyn Gororo, who will lead Women’s League and Norman Guramatunhu, who is the new Youth League provincial chairperson.

Elsewhere, Zanu PF Mashonaland West’s Women’s League members yesterday passed a vote of no confidence against their chairlady Constance Tsomondo-Shamu.

Provincial Women’s League political commissar Chinjai Kambuzuma said 22 out of 38 members of the executive signed the petition accusing Shamu of promoting cronyism and divisions within the party.

Part of the petition reads: “At the (Women’s League) conference in Harare, the chairlady, Constance Shamu caused havoc and instability by dividing people over the treasurer’s post as she wanted the post to be in Harare pushing it away from Mashonaland West because she was not happy about the elevation of Amai Grace Mugabe as the leader of Women’s League.

She used dirty money to buy people to complicate matters over that appointment at national level. We want a true Zanu PF cadre who can stand for the good of Mashonaland West people. We want honest and exemplary leaders who are guided by our principles of unity.

She has been promoting factionalism, hatred and disharmony.”

Shamu was replaced by her deputy, Angeline Muchemenyi.