Rugare Gumbo disowns Temba Mliswa

Struggles have erupted in expelled and former Vice President Dr Joice Mujuru's People First project even before it is officially launched, with its self-appointed spokesperson Mr Rugare Gumbo yesterday disowning Mr Temba Mliswa who has been at the forefront of pushing the party's agenda.

The disowning of Mr Mliswa, which is tantamount to his jettisoning from the project, comes after he attacked Dr Mujuru and members of her cabal, urging them to abandon the project. Mr Mliswa could not be reached for comment yesterday as he was said to be away in South Africa.

He was widely quoted in the private media on Monday berating the People First leadership. Using crude and unrefined language, Mr Mliswa said Dr Mujuru had "literally missed the bus" in politics.

Without elaborating, Mr Mliswa said the People First project, which is yet to be launched as a fully-fledged political party, was ''being run like the Zanu-PF Politburo''.

In his remarks, Mr Mliswa said: "They (Mujuru and company) must stop talking and call for a congress, launch a party and have structures to prepare for the coming election than just talk.

"The PF project was anchored on the nine chairpersons who were sacked from Zanu-PF, but I can tell you none of those are with them (Mujuru group) because they (chairpersons) were disillusioned.

"They felt as much betrayed as I was by Mujuru and (Didymus) Mutasa in particular. The way they capitulated and had they not been expelled none of them would have questioned President Robert Mugabe's choices of Vice Presidents or any other officials."

Mr Mliswa's remarks drew fire from Mr Gumbo who, yesterday, said Mliswa was not a member of PF, despite professing his allegiance to the project after he was sacked from the ruling party.

Mr Gumbo said there was not even a shred of truth in Mr Mliswa's claims, although he refused to divulge when Dr Mujuru and her cabal would launch their political party.

"Mliswa has never been a member of our group," he said. "We only supported him when he was ousted as the Zanu-PF provincial chairman for Mashonaland West province, but he has been running around claiming that he is part of us.

"We have not been working with him."

Ironically, Mr Mliswa attended a gathering convened by the MDC-T as Dzamara Prayer Rally as a representative of PF, where he was introduced as such.

Mr Gumbo accused Mr Mliswa of pushing a sinister agenda premised on lies and propaganda to destabilise the People First project.

"We don't know him and we think he is a Zanu-PF mole," he said.

"So far we don't have structures, but you should not worry about that because we are clear on where we are going. We are united and compact."

After his expulsion from Zanu-PF, Mr Mliswa was touted as a front runner in leading the youth wing of the People First project which also included Varaidzo Mupunga, Jim Kunaka and Prince Shinya.

Mr Mliswa jumped ship after he was incensed by Mujuru's silence on the future of the People First project and started to support MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai.

He said Mr Tsvangirai should lead a coalition of opposition parties that should face Zanu-PF in 2018.

Although she has published a manifesto for her People First project, Dr Mujuru remained silent on whether she would launch a political party, let alone contest in the next harmonised elections.