By Lloyd Mbiba
HARARE – First Lady Grace Mugabe yesterday bragged that she had vanquished Vice President Joice Mujuru.
And speaking at the same Zanu PF congress in Harare, President Robert Mugabe suffered another serious lapse of concentration, embarrassingly blurting out a taboo slogan, “Down with Zanu PF.”
Thanking Zanu PF members attending the congress, for backing her as Women’s League chairperson, Grace, who has been dubbed “Mother of Revelations” by National Assembly speaker Jacob Mudenda, said her exposure of Mujuru’s myriad of alleged sins had destroyed the VP.
And likening herself to a football referee, the First Lady said she blew the whistle on Mujuru because the VP was “offside”.
She claimed that Mujuru had been against her elevation to the Women’s League position, alleging further that the embattled VP had described the elevation as akin to the whistle being given to a baboon.
“I was given a whistle and like a whistle blower I blew it to whip people into line.
“Some thought I was out of tune. I realised that Mai Mujuru was offside and l sent emissaries to advise her that bhora pasi (I urged her to be calm) but she never heeded my advice.
“She is like a dung beetle which wheels the ball backwards instead of forward,” Grace added.
Mugabe’s wife further claimed she initially had no intention of exposing Mujuru but was later forced to do so by the VP’s wanton behaviour.
“I had no intentions of exposing Mai Mujuru’s corruption. It is only after she organised people to boo me during the Meet the People rallies that l said enough is enough l am going to retaliate.
“I never had the intention of exposing her and even VaMugabe (Mr Mugabe) said so. “What I said is only a tip of the iceberg. I couldn’t say some of her deeds because they are indecent for public consumption.
“I thought as a war veteran who participated in the liberation struggle, she was strong to weather away the attacks, but today she is not with us. No one banned her from coming to the congress,” Grace said.
Meanwhile, the 90-year-old Mugabe suffered another serious lapse of concentration, embarrassingly blurting out a slogan “Pasi ne Zanu PF’ (Down with Zanu PF).
In his acceptance speech after being endorsed as party president yesterday, Mugabe made the damaging howler which stunned his party members into silence.
He also suggested that he operated under the command of his wife.
“Mukadzi uyu arikundinyorera kuti ndataurisa. Ndozvandinoitwa kumba saka ndoteerera. Pasi ne Zanu PF (My wife has given me a note to say I’m talking too much. (That’s what she does to me even at home, so I must listen. Pasi ne Zanu PF),” said Mugabe.
On Tuesday, Mugabe suffered another serious lapse of concentration damagingly blurting out that opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai garnered 73 percent of the disputed 2008 presidential vote. But minions of the country’s long-ruling leader quickly cut in, forcing the nonagenarian to backtrack, claiming it was a slip of the tongue.
However, the spokesperson for opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, Luke Tamborinyoka, vehemently asserted yesterday that Mugabe had not suffered a slip of the tongue, but had finally told the truth about the disputed 2008 ballot, as well as the equally controversial 2013 national elections.
Mugabe’s embarrassing faux pas was made as he addressed securocrats and war veterans at the Zanu PF headquarters, ahead of the party’s politburo meeting on Tuesday.
Before he was corrected, Mugabe admitted that he and Zanu PF had not done well in the 2008 elections, going on to say Tsvangirai had garnered 73 percent of the presidential vote in the plebiscite.
“When we failed to, when Tsvangirai got 73 percent of the votes …”,
Mugabe said before he was forcefully interjected by some securocrats.
“Oh, he got 47 percent of the votes and I got 43 percent,” he corrected himself, adding, “Vanhu (people) made noise. They said don’t worry, elections, no elections.
“I said we should have elections, there is no winner with this 50 plus 1 percent”. Daily News
