Kasukuwere has no confidence in Mugabe: Wikileaks

A Zanu-PF Cabinet minister allegedly told US government officials that he had no confidence in Mugabe whom he said should step down to facilitate leadership renewal, an explosive secret cable released by WikiLeaks on Tuesday has shown.

The Minister of Youth Development, Indigenisation and Empowerment, Saviour Kasukuwere appeared to question the suitability of Mugabe during separate meetings with senior US government officials.

Kasukuwere allegedly met former United States ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Tom McDonald in November 2000 and called for leadership renewal in Zanu-PF.

He said the leadership change was supposed to start with the then vice-presidents, the late Simon Muzenda and the late Joseph Msika, to pave way for younger replacements, the cable reads.

"Kasukuwere, a youngish businessman with strong party ties, said that the land issue had been blown out of proportion and that farmland should not be taken away from white farmers by force. He also plainly stated that President Mugabe and his cronies must be phased out of their leadership role and some in his party had proposed that the two vice-presidents should step down as a first step."

In an interview yesterday, Minister Kasukuwere rebutted the WikiLeaks records, saying he never made such statements.

"That's utter rubbish," he said.

Another cable claims that Minister Kasukuwere also told the current US ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mr Ray, that youths should benefit from America's donor funds.

The Americans also make explosive allegations that Reserve Bank Governor Dr Gideon Gono told US diplomats about President Mugabe's health in 2008, saying he was battling cancer which would kill him by 2013.