Mnangagwa rails against G40

President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday said he is aware that the G40 faction in Zanu-PF was still alive almost eight months after the military intervened in the ruling party's vicious wars over former president Robert Mugabe's succession.

Mugabe's wife, Grace, was accused of being leader of G40, which had pushed Mnangagwa out of the party before her husband was ousted.

Addressing thousands of his supporters during a Zanu-PF rally in Marondera, Mnangagwa said the ruling party no longer tolerated insults.

"On July 30, Zanu-PF is going to demonstrate peacefully that it is a great party," he said.

"We are a great party and gone are the days of insults. The party had people full of insults, I am talking of G40 here. The G40 is still there, down with them."

Mnangagwa said Zanu-PF would be back in power come July 30. He said the Nelson Chamisa-led MDC Alliance was wasting time fighting the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) over transparency issues.

"We have observers in the country, please work with them well.

"The fact that many of them (observers) are in this country is that we want transparency in these elections. We need free and fair elections.

"There are those who are wasting time with demonstrations, fighting ZEC.

"ZEC is an independent body and it is guided by the Electoral Act, no single party should give it [ZEC] instructions.
"We need rule of law. Do not be provoked by the opposition, victory is certain."

Meanwhile, a number of Zanu-PF supporters walked out before Mnangagwa delivered his speech, prompting Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga to intervene.

"Where are you going? Sit down," shouted Chiwenga as the supporters ignored him Mnangagwa pulled a record crowd yesterday with supporters drawn from the entire province's nine districts and 23 constituencies.