CiZC pokes its nose into ZCTU affairs

The row between Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) over Obert Masaraure's suspension continued weekend with the pro-democracy group claiming the sanctioning of the firebrand union leader was being pushed by a vindictive "clique" of leaders within the country's largest trade union grouping.

Masaraure, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) president who doubles as CiZC spokesperson, was suspended from ZCTU last week over "allegations of misconduct" at a workers' day commemorations on May 1 at Dzivaresekwa Stadium in Harare.

In a weekend statement, CiZC chairperson Peter Mutasa slammed the activist's suspension, claiming they were not going to accept a decision that is allegedly being sponsored by a clique that was stung by Masaraure's candid talk.

"The suspension of Masaraure was pushed by a clique in the ZCTU leadership at its General Council meeting of 22 July 2023," Mutasa said.

"Amidst a fierce pushback by various affiliate unions who noted that the clique in the leadership had not procedurally followed the Standing Orders of the ZCTU constitution in effecting the suspension, which must have gone to a vote.

"The suspension is therefore null and void.

"Masaraure is the President of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) and also serves as the Spokesperson for the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition."

Masaraure was accused of snatching the microphone from the Master of Ceremony and proceeding to denounce ZCTU and its current leadership.

The ARTUZ leader, whose union is affiliated to ZCTU, is further alleged to have divulged some classified ZCTU information emanating from deliberations of a 27 April 2023 meeting.

Mutasa, a former president of ZCTU, disputed the charges, claiming Masaraure delivered a solidarity statement on behalf of Crisis Coalition during the commemorations.

He said footage exonerating Masaraure was widely circulated on various social media platforms.

"Surprisingly, footage of his speech which is also publicly available on various social media platforms clearly exposes the allegations as a blatant lie," Mutasa said.

"In fact, the footage clearly shows that the technical persons who were controlling the public address system, turned off the microphone during Masaraure's address in a bid to censor his hard-hitting speech.

"To be sure, Masaraure raised a number of issues, which resonate with the views of Crisis Coalition.

"He bemoaned the looting of state resources by a few elites as had been recently revealed through Al Jazeera's Gold Mafia series.

"He pointed out how workers were struggling and facing increasing poverty because the Government is not serious about a minimum living wage that is above the poverty datum line.

"He went on to urge the release of political prisoners, specifically pointing to the cases of Job Sikhala and Jacob Ngarivhume.

"He also called for a free and fair election, urging the citizens to stand ready to defend their vote. He pointed out, rightfully so, that a workers-led general strike was long overdue.

"The purported suspension of Masaraure seems to confirm our long-held fears that the ZCTU leadership has been captured by the ruling elites in a bid to undermine the ability of the workers' movement to represent and stand up for workers' and citizens' rights."