Zanu-PF Politburo defers 'divisive' poll rules indaba

THE Zanu-PF Politburo has deferred  to a later date discussions on the much-anticipated rules and regulations to guide primary elections.

The party, however, restructured its Bulawayo Province with the Politburo yesterday appointing Callistus Ndlovu as the new provincial chairman, taking over from Killian Sibanda.

National chairman Simon Khaya Moyo will be dispatched to Manicaland to look into problems there in the wake of a petition the province delivered to President Mugabe on the state of the party.

From Manicaland, Khaya-Moyo will visit all provinces to assess the challenges they face ahead of polls scheduled to be held by June 29.

The election manifesto was discussed amid reports that the document had been completed.

Sibanda now deputises Ndlovu in Bulawayo.

Zanu-PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo said a number of issues would be finalised in due course.

"We received a report on Bulawayo from the national chairman. On challenges in Bulawayo, we resolved that we need to expand the provincial executive.

"We will have Callistus Ndlovu as the chairman and Killian Sibanda becomes deputy chairman. The national chairman will also look at the challenges in Manicaland."

On problems in Bulawayo, Gumbo said "the people were not happy about certain people and personalities and the party was not connecting well".

Ndlovu is a Central Committee member and a former Cabinet Minister, while Sibanda was elected Bulawayo provincial chairperson last year, replacing Isaac Dhakamela who had been suspended.

Gumbo confirmed that a delegation from Manicaland recently visited President Mugabe and aired their grievances against some members of the party.

"The President received a delegation from Manicaland and they presented a petition."

Gumbo said Zanu-PF was facing problems in some provinces like any organisation of its size, but dismissed claims of an implosion in the revolutionary party.

"In any phenomenon there are contradictions. We have, as a party, non-antagonistic contradictions but they are not that serious. We are as strong as ever," Gumbo     said.

The Politburo got a briefing from Patrick Chinamasa on the re-engagement team's visit to Britain and the Constitution-making process.

"We discussed the Constitution-making process. We are waiting for the Constitution to be presented to Parliament on May 7."

The draft Constitution is now a Bill after it was gazetted last month.

It has to go through Parliament before the President assents to it to become the national supreme law.

The Politburo also heard from Chinamasa that the British had conceded that the dispute between Harare and London was purely bilateral.

The British are said to have indicated to the re-engagement team that there would be further talks on mending relations in the near future.

Chinamasa, Mr Elton Mangoma of MDC-T and Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga (MDC) recently travelled to London where they attended re-engagement talks with representatives from countries that imposed illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe among them the US, Canada, Australia and members of the European Union, ironically calling themselves Friends of Zimbabwe.