Senior Zanu-PF officials snubs pro-Kasukuwere meeting

Senior Zanu-PF Mashonaland Central officials yesterday snubbed a Provincial Co-ordinating Committee meeting called by their embattled acting chair, Dickson Mafios, to drum-up support for the equally under-fire National Political Commissar Saviour Kasukuwere.

The purported PCC meeting flopped after it failed to attract the required quorum of 100 members.

It is understood that the meeting was an attempt by Kasukuwere's supporters to arm-twist party members to back the commissar ahead of a verdict on his fate by Zanu-PF's Presidium.

Zanu-PF's Politburo asked the Presidium to decide Kasukuwere's fate after he was accused of plotting to topple President Mugabe, manipulating party structures, corruption, and fanning factionalism.

Yesterday's meeting was called in defiance of moratorium on any such meetings in the province until Kasukuwere's fate is sealed.

Most Members of Parliament, and Central Committee, National Consultative Assembly members from the province snubbed the meeting as they refused to be roped into a pro-Kasukuwere crusade.

Repeated attempts to get a comment from Mafios and Kasukuwere were fruitless yesterday as they did not pick up their mobile phones.

According to information gathered by The Sunday Mail, only two MPs were present while the main wing, Women's League and Youth League were also poorly represented.

The Sunday Mail reports that to woo people to the meeting, the desperate cabal misrepresented that the meeting was called for by National Secretary for Administration Dr Ignatius Chombo.

Zanu-PF deputy provincial chairman Kazembe Kazembe said, "I was invited to the meeting but I did not attend because I view it as illegal. We also got wind that they wanted to use the meeting to coerce members to support Kasukuwere ahead of the decision by the Presidium, so we refused to be part of the plot.

"Besides that, there is also a suspension for the holding of any meetings in the province and we respect that directive."

Bindura North legislator Kenneth Musanhi said, "I had meetings in my constituency so I decided not to attend."

Mashonaland Central Minister of State for Provincial Affairs Advocate Martin Dinha said Kasukuwere's cabal continued to cause disharmony.

Advocate Dinha, who was speaking from Zambia said: "I have been informed that the illegal meeting has flopped and this is not a surprise because the people of Mashonaland Central have rejected Mafios."

He said Kasukuwere remained unrepentant and wanted to use the Presidential Youth Interface Meetings to manipulate party members.

"Youths who claim to be loyal to Kasukuwere have hijacked preparatory meetings that are being held in the province ahead of President Mugabe's Youth Interface.

"They are intimidating Members of Parliament, threatening them that we will not be MPs in 2018 if Kasukuwere wins his case. We do not expect this at a time the PC is still in the dock," said Dinha.

All the party's provinces, save for Bulawayo, passed votes of no confidence on Kasukuwere after party structures from his home province of Mashonaland Central submitted a petition to the national leadership seeking his ouster.

Following the votes of no confidence, President Mugabe deployed a probe team led by Jacob Francis Mudenda to investigate the allegations.

According to their report to the Politburo, the probe team found Kasukuwere guilty of many of the charges.

The report noted that Kasukuwere was creating shadow MPs in constituencies with sitting legislators, a move believed to be part the alleged plot to topple President Mugabe by planting people loyal to the commissar in key positions. The probe concluded that the province had lost confidence in Kasukuwere, Dickson Mafios, and Wonder Mashange (provincial secretary for administration).

It also emerged that Kasukuwere was excessively interfering with operations of the province as he was improperly signatory to the party's provincial account.