Kasukuwere describes Mnangagwa's allies as drunkards

In a fresh assault on Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa's allies - as Zanu-PF's ugly tribal, factional and succession wars continue to burn hot - Local Government minister Saviour Kasukuwere has once again described them as a bunch of "drunkards" who allegedly think that the ruling party "is run from beer halls".

Kasukuwere, who is also Zanu-PF's all-powerful national political commissar, and is believed to belong to the Generation 40 (G40) faction which is opposed to Mnangagwa succeeding President Robert Mugabe, also told the Daily News at the weekend that the VP's backers were allegedly hellbent on effecting illegal regime change in Zanu-PF.

The miffed Kasukuwere, who is nicknamed Tyson on account of his combative political style, said this while responding to questions regarding last week's strong assertion by Mnangagwa's supporters that Zanu-PF's acting provincial chairpersons were holding office irregularly as they had allegedly been imposed on party structures.

"We have always said we are aware of the agenda of these people who interestingly seem not to have any idea of how Zanu-PF is run, to the extent of thinking, in their little intoxicated minds, that this massive party is run from some dingy hotel in Masvingo or some other place like that, hoping to effect regime change. But they will be sorry," he said. Kasukuwere's savage attack on Team Lacoste, the Zanu-PF faction rallying behind Mnangagwa's mooted presidential aspirations, came as his vocal friend and Higher Education minister, Jonathan Moyo, was also viciously laying into the Midlands godfather himself, vowing publicly on Sunday that he would never support the VP's alleged bid for the leadership of the ruling party.

Among the people who have recently claimed that Kasukuwere is imposing G40 members in provincial structures is former minister Paul Mangwana, who is also Zanu-PF's deputy legal affairs secretary.

But Kasukuwere dismissed Mangwana's and other alleged Team Lacoste kingpins' contention that he was running Zanu-PF in a factional manner as "beerhall talk" that was solely motivated by "successionist interests".

"He (Mangwana) is just trying to be big-headed because the chairpersons were approved by the politburo and he should have asked his boss Patrick Chinamasa, who chairs the national disciplinary committee, about it.

"Why is he trying to confuse people by making statements while he is drunk? Why did he make noise in defence of Ezra Chadzamira when he came into office through the same process to replace Killian Gwanetsa?

"Is it not his province that made that recommendation and why didn't he make the same noise if he did not believe the process was within the provisions of the Zanu-PF constitution?

"Is it not a fact that Section 264 of the party constitution says the deputy chairperson takes over from the chairperson when he is removed? Mangwana is clearly out of order and he should just shut up," Kasukuwere fumed.

This is the second time in less than two years that Kasukuwere has described Mnangagwa's allies as drunkards.

In May 2015, he labelled some leaders of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association (ZNLWVA) as drunkards, after the former liberation fighters launched a scathing attack on him and other ruling party bigwigs.

War veterans have made public their desire to have Mnangagwa as Mugabe's successor — a decision that has seen them sailing on a collision course with G40 kingpins.