News / National
Grace Mugabe faction plots anti-Mnangagwa demo
08 Nov 2017 at 05:44hrs | Views
MEMBERS of Zanu-PF's G40 faction have threatened to demonstrate in Harare today demanding that President Robert Mugabe fires former Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa from the ruling party.
The demonstration is set to coincide with the ruling party's politburo meeting in the capital to seal Mnangagwa's political fate.
Mnangagwa hitherto seen as a frontrunner to take over from 93-year-old Mugabe was unceremoniously kicked out of his government job on Monday on accusations of disloyalty, disrespect, deceitfulness and unreliability.
"The G40 group will stage a demonstration in Harare to push for the expulsion of Mnangagwa and his colleagues. The purges maybe at the same scale as we saw during the expulsion of (former Vice-President) Joice Mujuru and her Gamatox faction (in 2014)," a Zanu-PF source said.
But Zanu-PF Harare provincial commissar Shadreck Mashayamombe said the gathering had nothing to do with Mnangagwa's issues.
"We have a programme tomorrow. It will just be a show of support for the President. We want to thank him and the First Lady for continuously discharging their duties diligently in both the party and government.
"It will have nothing to do with that one (Mnangagwa) who was fired," Mashayamombe said, referring further questions to the youth league leadership.
Zanu-PF youth league political commissar Innocent Hamandishe said they were meeting to plan for next month's extraordinary congress.
He claimed youths could not force Mugabe to take a decision.
Mugabe cracked the guillotine on his long-time lieutenant Mnangagwa this week after weeks of pressure from First Lady Grace and her supporters in the G40 faction who accused the ex-VP of harbouring ambitions to topple the soon-to-be-94-year-old leader from power.
The demonstration is set to coincide with the ruling party's politburo meeting in the capital to seal Mnangagwa's political fate.
Mnangagwa hitherto seen as a frontrunner to take over from 93-year-old Mugabe was unceremoniously kicked out of his government job on Monday on accusations of disloyalty, disrespect, deceitfulness and unreliability.
"The G40 group will stage a demonstration in Harare to push for the expulsion of Mnangagwa and his colleagues. The purges maybe at the same scale as we saw during the expulsion of (former Vice-President) Joice Mujuru and her Gamatox faction (in 2014)," a Zanu-PF source said.
But Zanu-PF Harare provincial commissar Shadreck Mashayamombe said the gathering had nothing to do with Mnangagwa's issues.
"We have a programme tomorrow. It will just be a show of support for the President. We want to thank him and the First Lady for continuously discharging their duties diligently in both the party and government.
Zanu-PF youth league political commissar Innocent Hamandishe said they were meeting to plan for next month's extraordinary congress.
He claimed youths could not force Mugabe to take a decision.
Mugabe cracked the guillotine on his long-time lieutenant Mnangagwa this week after weeks of pressure from First Lady Grace and her supporters in the G40 faction who accused the ex-VP of harbouring ambitions to topple the soon-to-be-94-year-old leader from power.
Source - newsday
