Zanu-PF aborts meeting

A Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial executive committee meeting ended prematurely yesterday after embattled provincial chairman Temba Mliswa refused to recuse himself over the Spy-gate saga in which he is accused of working with and receiving money from a CIA operative attached to the US embassy in Harare.

The province is now seeking guidance from the Politburo over Mliswa's continued leadership of the province.

Despite admitting to receiving money from the US embassy at a Press conference he held in Harare in the morning, Mliswa launched a tirade against senior party members in the province when confronted over the spy-gate saga as he verbally attacked Politburo members Dr Ignatius Chombo, Patrick Zhuwawo, and Ziyambi Ziyambi and his wife Florence whom he accused of corruption.

Mliswa then had an altercation with Women's League secretary for finance Beauty Zhuwawo, wife of Zhuwawo, who in turn slapped him over the insults he was heaping on her husband who was not in the meeting.

The fallout was reportedly due to alleged disparaging remarks made by Mliswa to the effect that Patrick Zhuwawo and his wife Beauty were a "disgrace to the First Family".

Patrick Zhuwawo does not sit on the provincial executive committee.

Sources who attended the meeting said this did not go down well with Zhuwawo's wife who confronted Mliswa and slapped him right in the face, shouting angrily that she would do more harm to him as he had no right to talk about her husband who was not in the meeting.

Earlier on, according to sources Zhuwawo threw a bottle of water at Mliswa.

The sources said the meeting had showed simmering tensions from the onset.

Some members called for the inclusion of the "Spy-gate" issue on the agenda in which Mliswa is alleged to be working with US spy agency CIA according to weekend media reports.

Mliswa, the sources said, was also asked to recuse himself from chairing the meeting in the face of the "serious" nature of the allegations levelled against him.

"The meeting showed ominous signs from the onset after people argued over the inclusion of the allegations levelled against the chairman of spying for the American government. Some said they cannot continue the meeting with Cde Mliswa as chairman," said a source who attended the meeting.

The attack on the Zhuwawos by Mliswa allegedly stems from comments made by politburo member Patrick Zhuwawo in articles carried in The Sunday Mail.

According to the sources, Mliswa also made corruption allegations against Florence Ziyambi, who is the deputy Attorney General and wife to Mashonaland West deputy provincial chairman Ziyambi Ziyambi.

"He also accused Minister (Ignatius) Chombo of corruption and also said President Mugabe didn't like Patrick Zhuwawo," the sources said.

After the altercation, the Hurungwe West National Assembly Member Mliswa went to the police station and our Harare Bureau caught up with him as he came out of the station.

He denied knowledge of the altercation and referred all questions to the provincial secretary for information and publicity Simbarashe Ziyambi.

"I don't know anything about the issue. Talk to the provincial secretary for information and publicity," he said.

Ziyambi said he was not in a position to comment on the issue.

Makonde District police officer Superintendent Moyo, said police had not received a formal report on the matter.

Beauty Zhuwawo referred questions to Ziyambi Ziyambi, who confirmed the meeting was aborted after Mliswa refused to recuse himself from chairing the meeting.

"The meeting was aborted. People were dissatisfied by the conduct of the provincial chairman of taking Americans to the province. It then generated personality clashes with Mliswa insulting me saying I was a corrupt and useless minister. He also insulted my wife, Minister Chombo and everyone. He said there was nothing wrong with Americans," he said.

Ziyambi said they were going to take the matter to the Politburo.

"We will compile a report and hand it over to the Politburo. Politburo who will then give us direction on whether he should continue as the provincial chairperson. If he is cleared, that is ok," he said.

In an interview with our sister publication, The Sunday Mail this week, Mliswa admitted that he had taken suspected US CIA operative, Eric Little, to his constituency (Hurungwe West) in June and allegedly told constituents to stop saying "Pamberi neZanu" and embrace US money.

Party officials on the tour also said Mliswa introduced Little to headmen and villagers, and held meetings in Wards 15 and 20 of the constituency with councillors.

In the interview Mliswa said there was nothing wrong with the meeting because security agents in Mashonaland West cleared it.

"We are even using the US dollar . . . that is the biggest infiltration by the Americans because we are using their money. The visit by Little was well known by the police and the President's Office; he was accompanied by two state security agents. I am not stupid; I can prove that by way of producing all the communication to show that everything was above board.

"There is nothing amiss about the US funding projects that help the ordinary; they are allowed by government. Let's not play cheap politics.

"We know it's a few months before the (Zanu-PF) congress and people are plotting a coup against me. It's a witch-hunt," he said.