Mnangagwa feigns surprise at promotion

VICE president Emmerson Mnangagwa on Tuesday claimed that his appointment "came as a surprise" in a claim unlikely to be believed by Zimbabweans.

In an interview with ZTV shown on the main evening news bulletin, Mnangagwa said there were "many other deserving candidates who could have qualified for the post".

Nicknamed The Crocodile, Mnangagwa is widely reported to lead a faction of the ruling party Zanu-PF that has been struggling for a decade to gain the upper hand over a rival faction that was led by former vice president Joice Mujuru.

Mujuru was sacked last week by President Robert Mugabe on as yet unproven allegations she plotted to overthrow the 90-year-old Zimbabwean leader.

Mugabe's wife Grace and state media loyal to Mnangagwa mounted a vigorous campaign against Mujuru ahead of a key party congress early this month.

Mnangagwa, who is now well-positioned to succeed Mugabe, said Zanu-PF will concentrate on building its appeal for urbanites, who have long supported Zimbabwe's opposition.

"We believe that urban Zimbabweans - we need to dialogue with them, we need to share our vision about the future with them….We are going to do some concentration and some focus in the urban areas," he said.