Zimbabwe army generals 'panic' over Mujuru

STATEMENTS by army generals threatening violence ahead of 2018 elections betray the panic gripping the securocrats who fear former Vice-President Joice Mujuru could give President Robert Mugabe a torrid time, analysts have said.

Presidential Guard Commander, Brigadier General Anselem Sanyatwe allegedly told members of his unit in Harare that the military would be used to crush Mujuru's People First (PF), an offshoot of Zanu-PF.

Reports of Sanyatwe's remarks came hard on the heels of a controversial statement by Zimbabwe National Army commander Phillip Valerio Sibanda, that the military was ready for war.

He said in the past the army had stopped an uprising by MDC-T.

The army was accused of using violence to campaign for Mugabe ahead of a run-off election in 2008, where first-round winner Morgan Tsvangirai, was forced to withdraw after his supporters were killed.

Political analyst Alois Masepe said the comments by Sanyatwe showed that there was panic within the ruling elite and among securocrats as they did not know who was backing Mujuru.