Kaukonde next in line as Zanu-PF purge enters another phase

Former Mashonaland East Zanu-PF chairman Ray Kaukonde is topping the list of heavyweights to be dismissed from the troubled party this quarter as hawks aspiring to succeed President Robert Mugabe in the event that he relinquishes power, move to depopulate the political arena of perceived rivals who could frustrate their ambitions from within the governing party.

Zanu-PF bigwigs across the country's 10 political provinces have been lined up for expulsion because of their closeness, real or imagined, to former VP Joice Mujuru, who was given her marching orders last Thursday for plotting to upsurp power from the incumbent.

The writing is already on the wall for Kaukonde after Mashonaland East province wrote to Ignatius Chombo, the party's secretary for administration, and Saviour Kasukuwere, the national political commissar, recommending his dismissal from Zanu-PF.