Zanu-PF youths dare old guard

The Zanu-PF youth league, which triggered a storm early this month when it listed several people as being corrupt, will soon release a list of multiple farm owners mostly bigwigs in the ruling party.

In an interview, Zanu-PF's deputy secretary for the youth Lewis Matutu told the Daily News that the league is moving a gear up with its anti-corruption campaign, with guns now being turned on those who went against government's one-man farm policy.

The Zanu-PF youth league yesterday accused 15 top party and government officials, including the governor of the central bank, Cabinet ministers and business leaders of running illegal foreign currency rings, and named those it said were responsible for price manipulation and looting the economy.

But the officials denied the allegations and challenged the youths to provide evidence to back up their claims.

The party youths, led by youth league deputy secretary Lewis Matutu claimed the officials were running fuel and foreign currency cartels that were bleeding the economy.

The youths called on the police to investigate the named officials, warning that inaction could mean the police are also colluding in the illicit deals and said they would block all Zanu-PF officials who work at the party's headquarters from reporting for work until they clear their names.

Meanwhile, an international money laundering watchdog has put Zanu-PF bigwigs and prominent people on its radar after ruling party youths named them in a list of people that are allegedly driving the foreign currency parallel market.

The Zanu-PF youth league last month produced a list of people it accused of corruption and demanded that action be taken against them.

Topping the list were Zanu-PF secretary for administration Obert Mpofu, Tourism minister Prisca Mupfumira, Presidential Affairs minister Jorum Gumbo and Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor John Mangudya.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa promised to set up a commission of inquiry to investigate the claims by the youths, which have now attracted the attention of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Mpofu is a full time employee of Zanu-PF and has been warned that his doors will be locked and would be pushed out if he reported for work.

Mpofu and another top Zanu-PF official stand accused of resisting Mnangagwa's rise to power during the G40 and Lacoste factional fights which previously rocked Zanu-PF.