Zapu to hold elective congress next year

THE revived ZAPU, which is yet to make a meaningful impact on the country's political landscape since its 2009 alleged pull-out from the ruling Zanu-PF, has begun preparations for an elective congress due next year.

The party had a false start in its first ever appearance in the national polls last year when it failed to field candidates in some constituencies culminating in a devastating defeat at the hands of Zanu-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T).

This was despite the party having entered an alliance with the Welshman Ncube-led MDC a few days before the July 31 elections. The pact was, however, weak from the beginning since both Dumiso Dabengwa, ZAPU president and Ncube went on to contest the presidential race, which was won by President Robert Mugabe. ZAPU is one of the opposition parties in the country engaged in discussions to form a grand coalition to challenge Zanu-PF in the next elections due in 2018.

Its leader, Dabengwa, confirmed this week that ZAPU is building towards an elective congress next year. By March 2015, ZAPU's structures would begin debating and discussing the agenda items for congress whose date Dabengwa could not give.

"The party is focused on completing its restructuring exercise of the party organs. At the beginning of next year (2015) it is expected that the youth front and the women's wing will hold their conferences to elect their national leadership," he said.

The ZAPU leader said he would not impose himself on the people at congress saying it was up to party members to elect leaders of their choice as they build up to the 2018 polls. The 2015 congress will be the second one since ZAPU parted ways with Zanu-PF. The inaugural revived ZAPU congress which saw Dabengwa being unanimously elected president was held in August 2010 at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair exhibition centre in Bulawayo, a year after the party dumped Zanu-PF.

Dabengwa's nomination was endorsed by all the party's 14 provinces in a ballot presided over by then council of elders chairperson, the late Thenjiwe Lesabe. ZAPU alternate secretary-general, Strike Mkandla who acknowledged that they were not a "darling of donors" told the Financial Gazette this week that they were already busy mobilising their own resources mainly from members, adding the congress was likely to be held somewhere between June and July 2015.

"It's a bit tough, but we are now in the middle of somewhere," said Mkandla.

Dabengwa has challenged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to also start preparing for the next elections instead of waiting until it is too late. "The non-implementation of electoral laws guiding the conduct of elections should be implanted to ensure that the ZEC deals with the delimitation of constituency boundaries and registration of voters," said Dabengwa.

"This role of ZEC is clearly stated in the constitution and it is worrying that (almost) two years after the adoption of the new constitution ZEC is still silent on its constitutional mandate." Dabengwa said the proposed "grand coalition" was an opportunity to create a democratic state in Zimbabwe, but was quick to warn it should not be viewed in the context of a regime change agenda.

The ZAPU leader castigated the Zanu-PF led government for dragging its feet on implementing some constitutional provisions. "The continued non-implementation of the clause on devolution of power to the provinces is an abdication by the government of its mandated role of running the country according to the provisions of the constitution," he bemoaned.

"ZAPU demands the immediate establishment of provincial and metropolitan councils as provided for in the constitution."

However, political analysts have questioned the relevance of the Dabengwa-led party arguing the only way ZAPU can have an impact is through merging with other opposition parties.

Meanwhile, Zanu-PF's elective congress begins in Harare next week while the Ncube-led MDC and Tendai Biti's MDC Renewal Team are considering a combined congress next year. The MDC-T has just emerged out of its congress that retained the leadership of Tsvangirai and his deputy Thokozani Khupe.