SCORES of war veterans from Masvingo province were left stranded after being denied accreditation to the just-ended Zanu PF conference in the city, as the party’s security department feared that they could turn rowdy and embarrass President Robert Mugabe.
BY EVERSON MUSHAVA
NewsDay witnessed the former freedom fighters queuing for accreditation at Masvingo Polytechnic on Friday evening long after Mugabe had officially opened the conference.
Some war veterans, who spoke to NewsDay on condition of anonymity, expressed anger at the slow pace of accreditation claiming they were aware of a plot to shut them out of the conference.
“Some of us have been here since Wednesday, but have not been accredited up to now (Friday evening). We know they don’t want us to attend the conference,” one war veteran said angrily.
“I don’t know who told them that we wanted to boo the President. How can we do that when we are the custodians of the party and the President is our patron?” he said.
Zanu PF political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere (pictured), however, dismissed the claims saying all members, both invited and uninvited, were accredited.
“You even heard the President saying initially we expected 7 000 delegates, but we ended up with 9 000. This means that everyone, who came was accredited,” he said.
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“War veterans are part of us (Zanu PF), so how can we deny them accreditation? I think those people who told you that are not war veterans. They are detractors plotting to create enmity between the party and the war veterans.”
Mugabe’s relationship with the former freedom fighters hit an all-time low in the past few months after the latter accused him of wining and dining with non-party founders.
