'We were tricked to endorse Grace Mugabe,' says Chiefs

SOME traditional leaders yesterday sensationally claimed that they were tricked into endorsing First Lady Grace Mugabe's new-found political career during their tour of her private orphanage centre in Mazowe on Tuesday.

The chiefs said they had been misled into believing that the tour was just to help them appreciate the First Lady's charity work, but were taken aback when Chiefs' Council president Chief Fortune Charumbira railroaded them to endorse the First Lady's candidature as secretary-designate for the Zanu-PF Women's League.

"We were told that we were going to see the First Lady's projects. But when we arrived there, it turned out that the meeting had been organised to show solidarity over her appointment to be secretary of the Women's League," said a chief who declined to be named for fear of reprisals.

Grace has lately been apparently using the orphanage as a campaign springboard to launch her political career after she separately hosted thousands of Zanu-PF youth and Women's League members at the centre last month.

The groups in turn "unanimously" endorsed her candidature, effectively ruling out any contest for the post ahead of the ruling party's elective congress in December.

Grace's nomination has triggered fierce factional wars in the ruling party, forcing Mugabe to publicly defend her amid fears that the 90-year-old Zanu-PF leader was plotting to anoint her successor.

Vice-Presiddent Joice Mujuru and Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa are reportedly locked in bitter factional fights to succeed Mugabe.

The Mujuru faction, seen to be against Grace's rise, has accused the Mnangagwa faction of supporting Grace's rise as a choreographed move to neutralise Mujuru's power base.

As if to confirm the allegations, incumbent Women's League boss Oppah Muchinguri, believed to be a Mnangagwa ally, has lately turned herself into Grace's blue-eyed girl.

Chief Charumbira, also believed to be an ally of Mnangagwa, led the 250 traditional leaders in praise-singing of the First Lady, describing her as a philanthropist saying there was nothing unusual about her rise.

The chiefs' leader could not be reached for comment yesterday as he was reportedly travelling to Gweru for the traditional leaders' annual conference.

However, analysts slammed the chiefs' Mazowe trip saying it confirmed that the traditional leaders were partisan.

Mnangagwa, during a question-and-answer session in Parliament yesterday, defended the chiefs' Mazowe trip saying they had gone there to see the "Queen".

MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said the country's Constitution was very clear that chiefs should not dabble in internal party politics and Chief Charumbira ought to know that better.

"That they can go to Grace's property to show support for the proposed position in Zanu-PF leadership shows that the chiefs are acting in a partisan manner," Mwonzora said.

"It is not allowed under Section 15 of the new Constitution. It is unconstitutional, illegal and extremely patronising for the chiefs to do that."

Political analyst Alexander Rusero said the chiefs' behaviour posed a constitutional challenge.

"Very soon we will see the war vets, the war collaborators and other groups stampeding to visit Mazowe to endorse Grace. Having a Constitution is one thing and adhering to it is something else," Rusero said.

Meanwhile, Justice Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa says there was nothing wrong with traditional leaders supporting the First Lady Grace Mugabe to lead Zanu-PF's Women's League as they did in Mazowe.

Mnangagwa said that position did not in any way demonstrated partisanship on the part of traditional leaders, but that it was a mere show of allegiance to the Queen whose husband is the Head of state and Government.

He was responding to a question in the National Assembly by Kuwadzana MP Nelson Chamisa (MDC-T), who said what the traditional leaders, led by Chiefs Council president Fortune Charumbira, did exposed political partisanship.

Chamisa said the Constitution of Zimbabwe did not allow traditional leaders to be partisan and alleged that what they had done constituted a breach of the provisions of the Constitution, which prohibited them from aligning themselves with a political party. But Minister Mnangagwa differed.

In their support of Amai Mugabe, Chief Charumbira said the First Lady was doing philanthropic work, which deserved recognition. Responding to another question.