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Mahoka, Sandi-Moyo fired

Politics
BELEAGUERED Zanu PF women’s league deputy secretary Eunice Sandi-Moyo and treasurer Sarah Mahoka have been shut out of the party and are not sure of what to do next, NewsDay heard yesterday.

BELEAGUERED Zanu PF women’s league deputy secretary Eunice Sandi-Moyo and treasurer Sarah Mahoka have been shut out of the party and are not sure of what to do next, NewsDay heard yesterday.

BY OBEY MANAYITI/ BLESSED MHLANGA

Eunice Sandi-Moyo
Eunice Sandi-Moyo

This comes amid reports that the Zanu PF women’s league national executive, which met in Harare yesterday, recommended the expulsion of the two after they fell out of favour with the women’s league chairperson, First Lady Grace Mugabe.

Sandi-Moyo and Mahoka were on the ropes after Grace allegedly let loose party apparatchiks on them over a litany of accusations, including abuse of funds and usurping her power.

Hundreds of Zanu PF members, particularly from the women’s league, staged demonstrations across the country last week demanding the expulsion of the two party officials in what analysts said was reorganisation of a faction of the ruling party known as G40 pushing for the First Lady to succeed President Robert Mugabe.

Mahoka and Sandi-Moyo were key figures in the First Lady’s rise to lead the Zanu PF women’s organ in 2014 and the subsequent demolition job on then Vice-President Joice Mujuru, who was shunted out of office in the same manner that has befallen them.

Mahoka, who was in the United States on United Nations business and only arrived in the country early this week, summed up her sorry situation:

“I am still to get the story. I arrived yesterday (Monday) and I don’t know what is happening.”

Pushed to pour out her feelings over the issue, Mahoka retorted: “Ask those who have told you.”

Sandi-Moyo was none the wiser.

“Why are you asking me about that? No one has told me anything yet and I don’t know anything about this,” she claimed despite the bedlam surrounding the issue.

In the wake of the demonstrations, Sandi-Moyo held a hastily-arranged Press conference in Bulawayo last week seemingly digging her heels in, declaring her innocence on charges of seeking to undermine Grace’s authority and, instead, accused a rival faction sympathetic to Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s elevation to succeed Mugabe of being behind her problems.

Yesterday, the Bulawayo Provincial Affairs minister said she was still in the dark as regards her alleged crime.

“Where was I booted out? No one has told me that, so I will not comment on things that I don’t know. No one has given me the basic information on what is being said, so do you think I can comment on that?” she quipped while repeatedly claiming nobody had officially approached her over the allegations.

Sandi-Moyo added: “I said it before that there are people trying to cause friction between me and Amai (Grace), I said it. I don’t know what is happening and at the moment my comment is I can’t comment until I know exactly what is happening.”

Asked if she would reach out to First Lady Grace or other executive members to understand what was exactly happening, she was non-committal.

“That is a tough one, but I don’t know, I am confused. I really don’t know. You see I am 70 years now, I am old and I believe some of the things you just watch until you are told the direction,” she said.

Sources who attended yesterday’s meeting of the women’s league national executive said a unanimous decision was passed to purge the duo.

“They will be suspended from the party and will lose their posts. Everyone was in agreement to have them sacked, but they will not be fired from the party,” the source said.

Soon after the executive meeting chaired by Grace, members of the executive danced and sang while congratulating each other.

One of the members shouted that they had closed the chapter of Mahoka and Sandi-Moyo’s “madness” and had set their focus on political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere.

“We had been under bondage for a long time now. We have been freed. We have dealt with Mahoka and Sandi, now we are left with Kasukuwere,” the unidentified women’s league executive member could be heard shouting.

Kasukuwere was unreachable for comment last night.

But, women’s league spokesperson Thokozile Angela Mathuthu was coy with information saying while they had discussed allegations against Mahoka and Sandi-Moyo and received petitions from all provincial chairpersons, the women’s wing would follow procedure in disciplining.

“The women’s league national executive also met here as a follow-up to the Monday meeting by the Top 10. Again chairpersons of the women’s league presented petitions from their respective provinces against the two executive members which were discussed at length.

“Following those deliberations, it suffices at this stage to say that due processes regarding the resolution of disciplinary cases of this nature will be followed through,” she said.

Mahoka and Sandi-Moyo did not attend the two meetings, with Mathuthu saying they had offered apologies, but were free to be part of the gatherings as no action had been taken against them.

Mathuthu also dismissed claims that the demonstrations against the two had been funded by Kadoma businessman Jimaya Muduvuri.