ZANU-PF congress another damp squib

 as factionalism, tribal fights carry the day
 ‘Party not ready for elections anytime soon’

Brian Mangwende, News Editor

INTERNECINE fighting and jockeying for positions, which characterised the run-up to the ZANU-PF congress held last week, has left the party more divided than ever before, casting serious doubt about its preparedness for an early election, analysts said this week.
The intra-party fights within the party have, over the years, whittled down ZANU-PF’s support base to the present situation where it faces the real threat of being relegated to opposition politics in next elections.
What had been hoped to be one of the most exciting congresses the party had ever held since 1980, when the country gained independence from Britain, turned out to be a damp squib after ethnic divisions and factional fights took the centre-stage.
This left the party’s leadership spending the better part of the congress scheming on how to crash dissent and avoid embarrassment.
Once again, the congress lacked robust debate and discussion on bread and butter issues that the ordinary man and woman in the street is grappling with daily to keep body and soul together.
As always, issues to do with the poor state of the country’s economy were relegated to the periphery resulting in a situation where most of the adopted resolutions related to political matters that do not resonate with the common man in the biscuit factory.
The nation, which was waiting with bated breath for the outcome of the deliberations, was once again subjected to the familiar mantras of sanctions, land reform and attacks against perceived enemies of President Robert Mugabe’s administration who are used as punching bags at ZANU-PF gatherings.
The ageing Zimbabwean leader accuses Britain and its allies of fomenting pubic anger in Zimbabwe in a bid to effect regime change.
Lovemore Madhuku, the chairman of the National Constitutional Assembly, had this to say about the congress: “There is nothing to take home; there is completely nothing new. One can hardly tell the difference between the congress of 1999, 2004 and this one.”
Discontent within the rank and file of the party swirled during the nomination process for the presidium, which is the highest-ranking organ of the party and central committee — its policy-making organ.
Once again, the party placed its faith in President Mugabe to take it through the next five years.
Analysts said this underscored the notion that there is seemingly an absence of a clear succession policy and dearth of strong leaders in the party who can fit into President Mugabe’s shoes.
Delegates had to be whipped into line to accept Joice Mujuru and John Nkomo as co-Vice-Presidents while Simon Khaya Moyo, Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to South Africa, became the national chairman.
In a way, the party played into the hands of critics who accuse it of thwarting internal democracy in a bid to push the selfish and, in some cases, tribalistic agenda, of only a few of its members.
This was evidenced by the party leadership’s inability to invite nominations from the floor for fear of upsetting its preferred hierarchy.
Analysts said had genuine democracy been given a chance, the possibility of dark horses such as Oppah Muchinguri, the ZANU-PF Women’s League boss; Didymus Mutasa, the party’s secretary for administration and Emmerson Mnangagwa, its legal affairs supremo, brewing a shocker, were quite high.
In the end, one could not help, but sense the feeling of utter dejection, anger and disappointment on the faces of Mnangagwa and Mutasa, whose campaign teams were whipped into line to support Mujuru and Moyo.
At the congress, some senior provincial leaders, who had successfully out-manoeuvred their factional rivals, went into paroxysms when it became clear that there was chaos building up at grassroots levels to disrupt proceedings.
Known factions that were in the thick of things, schemed on how to stifle discontent forcing the party to postpone crucial amendments to its constitution.
On Saturday, speculation was rife that unsanctioned delegates from various provinces had been bussed in the wee hours of the morning specifically to block the confirmation of Mujuru and Nkomo as the two Vice-Presidents and that of Moyo as national chairman.
But as soon as party leaders got wind of the machinations, they quickly hatched a plan to scuttle any attempts to spoil the party.
Those bussed in were denied entry into the congress venue, security was beefed up and President Mugabe had to handpick some of the losing candidates during the run-up to the congress and catapult them into the central committee to calm emotions within factions that felt hard done by the leadership’s decisions.President Mugabe, who has ruled the country since independence, had to rope into the central committee Harare South legislator, Hubert Nyanhongo, who had been dropped by the province on alleged tribal grounds.
Nyanhongo, who hails from Manicaland, had fought a fierce battle for almost a year against Amos Midzi for the metropolitan province’s chairmanship, but lost.
Pressure was also exerted on Manicaland to revise its list to include into the central committee former chairman, Mike Madiro, and Member of Parliament for Mutare South, Fred Kanzama.
Kanzama and Madiro had been sidelined after being linked to the Tsholotsho saga in which a faction aligned to Mnangagwa tried to stop Mujuru’s ascendancy into the presidium in December 2004.
There was also drama on the eve of the congress.
Basil Nyabadza, the provincial chair for Manicaland, resigned in protest over the manner in which the nominations were handled.
He was behind Mutasa for national chairperson ahead of Moyo, but had his bid shot down under the guise of the Unity Accord, a gentlemen’s agreement signed in 1987 between ZANU-PF and PF-ZAPU that reserves the seat for former PF-ZAPU cadres although nothing is written down to that effect.
Masvingo and Mashonaland West provincial chairpersons, Lovemore Matuke and John Mafa, did not hide their displeasure over the selection process either, throwing the party further into disarray.
Matuke, whose province chose Muchinguri for Vice-President and co-Home Affairs Minister, Kembo Mohadi, for national chairperson, said although he was disgruntled, he would not leave the party while Mafa ruffled feathers in his province when he said: “I am disgruntled, but not on the issue of national chairmanship. I am not happy with the selection of central committee members from the province, but I have not yet decided to quit.”
In Masvingo, Tourism Minister, Walter Mzembi is said to be seething with anger after he was not considered into the central committee while politburo member, Dzikamai Mavhaire, is under fire for supporting a faction aligned to Mujuru which forced the reversal of Muchinguri’s nomination to the vice-presidency.
But in frantic efforts to manage the situation President Mugabe deferred announcing members of the politburo until the dust has settled.
With national elections said to be around the corner, the question that immediately comes to mind is whether ZANU-PF is ready for the plebiscite against a resurgent Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) that denied it a parliamentary majority in the March 2008 synchronised polls?
“This congress was fundamental in that it marked part of the party’s last days of survival and is facing real collapse. When you tamper with the agenda of such a congress, it must tell you that all is not well.
“The party is in trouble and it clearly shows they are not ready for elections unless they are able to repeat the June 2008 election scenario,” political analyst John Makumbe said in reference to the violence that flared up in the run-up to the June 27 presidential run-off.
MDC-T leader, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, had to pull out of the race citing violence and intimidation against his supporters resulting in the election being called a sham by regional leaders and the international community.
“In fact, ZANU-PF is not keen on the constitution-making process or elections for now because it would prove disastrous for them despite this calling for early elections.
“The current arrangement suits them just fine and I see them dragging the GPA (Global Political Agreement) for as long as possible,” added Makumbe.
Makumbe said the outcome of the congress clearly proved that there were people in the party who are now ready to challenge the presidium adding that the old guard was desperate to keep them under control.
Academic and political analyst, Ibbo Mandaza, said the shenanigans and turf wars that played out at the congress were a clear sign that ZANU-PF was not ready for any election anytime soon lest the party wants to sink into oblivion.
“What President Mugabe said about the elections is just politicking,” Mandaza said.
“ZANU-PF is definitely not ready for elections considering what transpired before and at the congress. He probably said that because of the euphoria around the congress.
“This congress marked the critical turning point because it is almost definite that it is (President) Mugabe’s last.
“It also confirms the view that the transition, which began in 1999, of a new dispensation, is underway.”
Mandaza said there is the realignment of forces within ZANU-PF as part of a new dispensation unfolding in the party.
“It marks the consolidation of former ZANLA/ZIPRA, which has been the anchor of post-independence politics determining the future direction of Zimbabwe,” he said.
“The Mujurus’ faction is really the former ZIPRA/ZANLA forces and the perceived conflict between Emmerson Mnangagwa and the Mujurus has been exaggerated because it ignores the realities of the former ZIPRA and ZANLA forces of which the Mujurus, Mnangagwa and Dumiso Dabengwa remain critical factors.”