ZANU PF has accused some of its top leadership of sowing seeds of division between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his deputy Constantino Chiwenga by propagating coup rumours. Acting Zanu PF party spokesperson Patrick Chinamasa said politburo member Claveria Chizema was suspended from the politburo yesterday.
BY BLESSED MHLANGA
“The security department of the party presented an elaborate report to the politburo, a plan on how outside forces were busy fomenting discord in the party, working with certain individuals in the party’s senior ranks to destabilise internal cohesion and unity of purpose in the party,” Chinamasa said.
He said the senior officials were burning mid-night candle to try and put a wedge between Mnangagwa and Chiwenga as succession wars begin to take a toll in the party.
“The same individuals have been burning mid-night candle, wishing to propagate disunity between President Mnangagwa and his Vice-Presidents Cde Chiwenga and VP Mohadi,” Chinamasa said. Zanu PF alleged Chizema was found with fliers in her home, which were left there in March, carrying a message purporting that there was an impending coup in the party.
“The posters had a message that there was a coup coming and had the names of the people who were behind the coup, but these posters had false information,” Chinamasa said.
“She failed in her duties as a senior member of the party when she did not report this to the party security or national security and, therefore, she has been suspended to pave way for investigations.”
Last month, the Joint Operations Command held a Press conference to dispel rumours of a coup.Chinamasa said Zanu PF security was aware of internal plots by Zanu PF bigwigs against Mnangagwa, adding that they would be flushed out of the party.
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“The culprits are trying to smear Vice-President Chiwenga at the same time trying to psyche our unsuspecting people into thinking that the party was divided,” he said. “Those calling for demonstrations had been funded by hostile forces to print fliers bearing the name of senior leadership in the party as purportedly supporting demonstrations despite that such leaders have no knowledge of these culprits.”
The report read in the politburo suggested that there was information pointing to the fact that Chiwenga wanted to oust his boss.
“Among one of their futile imagination is that VP Chiwenga is planning a coup against his compatriot, President Cde ED Mnangagwa and that the two don’t see eye to eye,” Chinamasa said. Mnangagwa is said to have warned those in the party supporting the July 31 demonstrations. He allegedly told the politburo members that there would be gnashing of teeth.
“However, those who have been colluding in spreading these machinations, projecting a wrong image of the party and working with hostile forces bent on dividing the party will be dealt with in line with the standing rules of the party’s supreme constitution,” he said.
Zanu PF has been fretting over protests planned for tomorrow by opposition parties, churches and civic organisations.
