Chamisa celebrating Zanu-PF factionalism

THE opposition MDC party says it will be grabbing "popcorn and chairs" for front row seats in what appears to be factional fights playing out in the ruling Zanu-PF, where officials are tearing each other apart over alleged corruption.

Party leader Nelson Chamisa said the MDC would not disturb its opponents as they tear each other apart, and neither would they join the game, but instead watch and cheer from the terraces.

"We will not disturb our opponents as they tear each other apart, in what is clearly political and factional fights. These people are cruel and do not care about anything, but just power alone," Chamisa said.

"This is not a fight against corruption, but a fight for political power within the party using the youth. If this was a genuine fight against corruption, where are the police? Do you mean the Zanu-PF youth league has more intelligence than the police and Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission?"

The MDC joined Zanu-PF in Parliament and on the streets for a march to oust then President Robert Mugabe from power through impeachment and mass demonstrations following the November 2017 coup.

After Mugabe was pushed out, Zanu-PF claimed the spoils and kept the opposition at bay, saying this was an internal issue and had nothing to do with opposition political parties.

Chamisa said recent events in which the Zanu-PF youth league fingered top party bosses and ministers in corruption was an attempt to divert the attention of the majority from the real issues.

"Ask yourself why some people known for being behind corrupt activities are missing from that list. It's a high sounding nothing from an ostrich government which buries its head in the sand at the sign of a crisis, but the problem with burying your head is you will hear or see nothing," he said.

Chamisa said if President Emmerson Mnangagwa was serious about fighting corruption, he would let the police do a professional job while he concentrated on ending the economic crisis, which he said had its roots in political circles.

"This is a crisis too long. We do not deserve a day longer in this crisis and what hurts is the time wasted for the youth and hardworking people who lose pensions and savings to this cruel government," he said.

But Zanu-PF deputy youth secretary Lewis Matutu said his team was just warming up and would soon name MDC leaders who were also part of the corruption bandwagon.

"This is not a Zanu-PF fight. Everyone should be involved and we are going to name more. We are going after even the MDC leaders who are corrupt and even journalists who are receiving money to cover up corrupt deeds," he said.

However, MDC youth assembly boss Obey Sithole yesterday described the anti-corruption drive as nothing, but a diversionary tactic to stop Zimbabweans from focusing on the pressing socio-economic issues.

Sithole said the country is reeling under the ever-worsening economic scourge, which has seen prices of basic commodities spiralling beyond the reach of many.

He accused Zanu-PF of authoring and perpetuating corruption in Zimbabwe, while urging the country to resist being swayed from the main issue.

"It is an insult to the people of Zimbabwe for the Zanu-PF youth league to name and shame officials in the corruption-laden party, leaving a big elephant in the house, for we all know that a fish rots from the head," Sithole said in a Press statement, adding that most Zanu-PF officials had been implicated in some corruption cases.

Sithole maintained the naming and shaming was nothing, but a ruse.
"It is clear that the anti-corruption facade by Zanu-PF is meant to achieve two things, which are not in any way interlinked to the war against corruption.

"Firstly, the attention-seeking drama is bent on entertaining and diverting the long-suffering citizenry from focusing on souring prices and stinking poverty authored by the very same party. Secondly, and more importantly to Zanu-PF, is that this is an internal detonation that is meant to purge remnants of the G40 and those aligned to Vice-President Constantano Chiwenga's factional camp," Sithole said.

"In short, this is a factional battle at play which has nothing to do with the fight against corruption. If anything, the Zanu-PF youth league's so-called anti-corruption drive exposes and portrays the corrupt nature of State institutions like Zacc [Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission] and ZRP [Zimbabwe Republic Police]."

The opposition has been threatening to take to the streets to force the Zanu-PF-led government to deal with the economic mess.