Goche held hostage by Zanu PF youths

BINDURA – Zanu PF youths on Sunday demonstrated against Public Service minister, Nicholas Goche, for allegedly being part of a clique plotting to assassinate President Robert Mugabe.

The youths took advantage of a provincial congress committee meeting in Bindura, Mashonaland Central, meant to discuss preparations for the forthcoming congress to show their displeasure against Goche whom they said was working with those against President Mugabe.

Zanu PF officials who attended the meeting told The Zimbabwe Mail that he was held hostage by the youths who wanted “his head” or a satisfactory explanation from the under-fire minister.

“It was tense, people want him out and this was a small sign of things to come,” said a provincial youth member speaking on condition of not being named.

“He must go or we will push him out,” the youth official said.

This happened as President Mugabe on Saturday confronted the former spy minister over allegations he was plotting to kill him if he does not step down.

In Mashonaland West, ousted Zanu PF provincial chairperson Temba Mliswa, who seemed on course to bounce back into Zanu PF central committee, faced a boot after the provincial leadership decided that since he had been booted out by the national disciplinary committee, he was unfit to be in the party’s top decision making body.

Local Government minister, Ignatius Chombo, who is also head of the Zanu PF congress co-ordinating committee for the province, told an inter-district provincial conference that according to rules and regulations set out by the politburo – the top management body of the central committee – Mliswa cannot be a central committee member.

Chombo said anyone who has been brought before the disciplinary hearing in the last five years was not eligible to be seconded to the central committee.

“For one to be in the central committee, he has to have served the party for a continuous 15 years, not charged by the party’s disciplinary committee in the last five years and have no criminal record,” he said.

The provincial committee members and some senior politburo members yesterday held closed door meetings that lasted for more than six hours with information indicating they were planning to block some senior party members who are accused of aligning themselves to under-fire Vice-President Joice Mujuru. The Zimbabwe Mail