ZANU-PF will descend heavily on corrupt and wayward members who allege factionalism and use the names of senior party leaders in a bid to hide criminal and disciplinary issues they will be facing, the party’s national political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere said yesterday.
Speaking to the Herald on Sunday Kasukuwere said that Zanu-PF was bigger than any individual and no one should claim “to be an ally of anybody”.
He was officiating at a meeting for tobacco farmers in Mt Darwin where he dismissed the alleged existence of a group going by the name
“Generation 40” in Zanu-PF, saying it was an imaginary faction created by expelled members of the Dr Joice Mujuru-led putschist cabal and propagated by the private media in their bid to push the faction agenda.
Kasukuwere spoke in the wake of claims by ousted Mashonaland Central youth league chairperson Godfrey Tsenengamu, his secretary for administration Paul Rwodzi and secretary for security Batsirai Musani who were given votes of no confidence on Saturday.
Tsenengamu was quoted in the private media claiming that he and his colleagues had been ousted for inviting Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa to officiate at a function organised by an apostolic sect in Mashonaland Central.
It, however, emerged yesterday that the trio faced numerous charges, among them embezzling party funds and holding secret meetings with other party leaders from other provinces without the knowledge of their provincial leadership.
Tsenengamu, in particular, stands accused of stealing cattle donated towards President Mugabe’s birthday bash, which he allegedly used to pay lobola for his second wife.
Kasukuwere said hiding behind the names of senior party leaders would not exonerate the trio.
“This business of people trying to pre-empt disciplinary proceedings by trying to drag in the leadership is unacceptable,” he said.
“Trying to bring themselves closer to individuals will not save them because the party is larger than an individual. Let us not run away from criminal issues and try to hoodwink the nation. If you have a criminal case, just go and answer it and stop dragging the leadership into those criminal matters.”
He added: “Theirs is a matter which is on its way to the national disciplinary body from the province and from what we were briefed, it has nothing to do with VP Mnangagwa’s recent visit. What surprises us is that they claim to be allies of someone.
“The party is full of members and we deal with membership, not allies.”
Kasukuwere said there was no bad blood between VP Mnangagwa and the Mashonaland Central provincial leadership, hence the good reception he received when he visited Madzibaba Wimbo’s Shrine.
“You cannot just wake up and try to join two unrelated issues,” Kasukuwere said.
“The VP’s visit was known by the party leadership and we asked the provincial chairman (Dickson Mafios) and Members of Parliament to go and receive him.
“Mnangagwa is the Vice President of this country and he is welcome in Mashonaland Central like any other place.”
He said before the recent visit, VP Mnangagwa had been in Mashonaland Central on two occasions this year—campaigning for the party in Mbire District ahead of last month’s by-elections and officiating at a Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services function in Bindura.
“We are 100 percent behind President Mugabe and his entire leadership including the VPs because this is the choice of our leader and we must support him,” said Kasukuwere.
“We want to disabuse the notion that Mashonaland Central province has issues with one of our VPs, it is a big NO! We enjoy the company of our leadership, coming to give us direction. We disabuse philosophies by individuals that they own the VPs. No one owns them because they are our party leaders,” Kasukuwere said.
Responding to reports that he snubbed VP Mnangagwa during the shrine visit, Kasukuwere said as the acting Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare he had to attend First Lady Dr Grace Mugabe’s event at Danhiko in Harare.
He said it was detestable for anyone to talk about Presidential ambitions when President Mugabe was firmly in control of the party.
Kasukuwere said the Zanu-PF leadership should ignore the “rantings on imagined factions” such as G40 being peddled by the private media.
“G40 was a creation of Rugare Gumbo and his clique and anyone who regurgitates that is in agreement with him,” he said.
“Where have you seen G40? Who can do that honestly? We must be guided much more by seriousness and the need to deliver to our people not to be diverted. What we are concerned with more is the recovery of the economy than giving people labels. Some of us are happy where we are and if you want to justify your faction, you should not create one.”
He warned Zanu-PF members feeding the private press with inaccurate information that the party would one day unmask them.
Said Kasukuwere: “The moment you see somebody feeding the private press then you must suspect there is a motive behind it. If you are a genuine cadre stand up and be known, say this is what happened and this is where I stand.” herald
