Zanu-PF youth leader tears into Tsvangirai

ZANU-PF Harare provincial youth chairman Godwin Gomwe yesterday claimed that opposition MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai had lost his political clout since his defeat by President Robert Mugabe in the 2013 controversial elections, and was now trying to seek relevance by visiting violence sites like he did in Budiriro last week.

"Why does he want to fight at my level?

"Am I that big? In fact, he is truly not my level. I am bigger than him. I think he is afraid of me," Gomwe said.

Tsvangirai toured Budiriro last Thursday following violent inter-party clashes that saw at least three MDC-T officials arrested while several others sustained injuries.

Gomwe, who took over from Jim Kunaka, another feared Zanu-PF cadre who reportedly terrorised vendors in Mbare through use of a militia known as Chipangano, has been accused by the MDC-T of unleashing violence on opposition members in Budiriro.

The ruling party youth leader, however, denied the charges.

"I do not spend the day in Budiriro. I am in town during the day and if there are people I can terrorise, I can do that at Harvest House, not in Budiriro.

"If he (Tsvangirai) has nothing to say he can go hang. I am not the one who said his party should break into five.

"He must focus on his social problems and he must know that he wasted time when he was asked to serve in government, but went out for other things instead," Gomwe added.

During Tsvangirai's visit to the area last week, local MP Costa Machingauta spoke of how Gomwe and Zanu-PF had turned the area into a no-go area for the MDC-T youths while vendors and kombi operators were being forced to pay $1 a day at the Zanu-PF "terror" base.

Local councillor Panganai Charumbira told Tsvangirai the local authority had been rendered powerless by rogue Zanu-PF elements who were now "a law unto themselves".