Mujuru speaks out on expulsion

By Gift Phiri

HARARE – Former Vice President Joice Mujuru has bluntly told her Zanu PF foes that she could never be expelled from the “genuine” ruling party, while also openly querying for the first time the mysterious death of her husband, General Solomon Mujuru, whose remains were found after an inferno at their Beatrice farm in 2011.

In a statement released by her aides that is in possession of the Daily News, Mujuru also savaged Zanu PF bigwigs for showing no care for the life of abducted journalist turned pro-democracy activist Itai Dzamara, as well as the welfare of his young family.

“On the eve of the holiest day on the Christian calendar, the politburo chose to dwell on its relentless, unsubstantiated, malicious and hateful campaign against the person of Amai Mujuru.

“As if this was not inhuman enough, the much-decorated national hero, the late General Mujuru, who passed on in yet unclear circumstances, was not spared as well. It is un-Zimbabwean to desecrate our dearly departed. Hunhui ihwohwo / Ubuntu bani lowu?

“One wonders if the politburo ever spared any moment to enquire on the disappearance or lack of news on the whereabouts of young Itai Dzamara and what his young family is going through. My prayers go to ALL those who are hurting in silence.

“Given the prevailing economic hardships, the looming food crisis (tutsawona) and the declining inflows to the fiscus, the politburo’s silence on these matters is deafening.

“Ini handidzingike mu-original (I cannot be expelled from the original) and genuine Zanu PF!!!,” the hard-hitting statement said.

The statement came after President Robert Mugabe’s warring Zanu PF said they had summarily expelled her from the party last week, and at a time that the ruling party is on fire over contentious claims that her husband, whose war-time name was Rex Nhongo, plotted with her to oust and assassinate the nonagenarian before the revered late liberation war icon’s charred remains were found after the mysterious 2011 inferno.

It also came as Zanu PF has now officially split into two distinct and bitterly-opposed formations, with disaffected party stalwarts — including liberation struggle pioneers, war veterans and security sector bigwigs — coalescing under the banner and principles of the “original Zanu PF” and using the slogan “People First”.

The divisive allegations against Gen Mujuru, whose funeral at the Heroes Acre in Harare drew the largest crowd ever seen at the burial site, were contained in a report prepared by Zanu PF’s disciplinary committee and that was adopted by the party’s politburo last week.

The shocking claims have since prompted the Mujuru family to plan an urgent meeting to discuss the “disturbing and extremely serious” allegations, what the allegations mean and whether this had “played a part” in the death of the liberation pioneer.

Ironically, the late general is widely credited with catapulting Mugabe to the leadership of Zanu PF in the mid 1970s. However, he was also seen as the only senior party official who could challenge the nonagenarian.

His wife, who was once seen as Mugabe’s de facto successor, was booted out as Vice President of both the ruling party and the government last December following a vicious political assault on her by controversial First Lady Grace Mugabe.

The former VP was then subsequently expelled from the party altogether last week, the day that Grace resurfaced in the public domain after weeks of speculation regarding her health.

Investigations by the Daily News showed earlier this week that the disaffected Zanu PF stalwarts who are involved with Zanu PF “People First” have been meeting regularly with many prominent Zimbabweans for some time now, to plan “the operationalisation” of the party in a bid “to reclaim the original Zanu PF”, which they allege has been hijacked by power-hungry mafikizolos.

Sources said many expelled and serving Zanu PF ministers, Members of Parliament, Youth and Women’s league officials who had been victims of the party’s harassment and brutal purges of the past few months, which had been fronted by Grace, supported the idea of Zanu People First and were pushing Mujuru to lead the party.

Former Presidential Affairs minister, Didymus Mutasa, who is a former top aide of Mugabe, has said that the group is pinning its hopes on the popular widow to lead the party.

“There is no doubt that the person that will take Zimbabwe from the current political and economic mess is Amai Mujuru. The government has failed and the Look East policy only makes a few people rich.

“Only until there is a real change of government, we are all going to suffer. The only person capable of changing this is Amai Mujuru.

“We are members of the original and genuine Zanu PF which was formed on August 8, 1963. We constitute the nucleus that bore the brunt of the national struggle. Unlike the mafikizolos who constitute the new-look and illegal central committee and politburo of the 2014 Zanu PF.

“Our membership is composed of the original and seasoned politicians, commanders of the Zimbabwe African National Army (Zanla), Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (Zipra) and Zimbabwe People’s Army (Zipa) forces who are now being marginalised,” Mutasa said. Daily News