Mutsvangwa regrets serving as Mugabe's minister

OUTSPOKEN former War Veterans minister Christopher Mutsvangwa yesterday said he regretted accepting a Cabinet appointment last year, claiming the 12 months he spent in government were the most unproductive in his life.

Mutsvangwa was last year appointed War Veterans minister, a year after he played a key role in the ouster of former Vice-President Joice Mujuru from both Zanu-PF and government on allegations of plotting to topple President Robert Mugabe.

But the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association chairman was booted out last Friday for gross misconduct, a day after the Zanu-PF politburo slapped him and his wife, Monica, with three-year suspensions from the party.

Both Mutsvangwas have been linked to a faction reportedly supporting Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Monica has also reportedly lost her Manicaland senatorial seat and government post, where she was Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion deputy minister.

Yesterday, she declined to comment on reports of her expulsion.

In an exclusive interview with NewsDay yesterday, Mutsvangwa said his ouster from government was a blessing in disguise as he would now concentrate on his "successful" business life.

"I have been in Cabinet for a year now. Sadly, this has been the most non-productive 12 months of my life," Mutsvangwa said.

"I am once again out of appointed public office. I can now revert to being more flexible and innovative in what I do best. I love the thrill of global business. The beauty this time is I have a formidable global network. And the rewards can be targeted, so my family can be in the catbird seat. Let the good times begin."

Before his expulsion from government, Mutsvangwa last week said he neither cared about losing his Cabinet post nor the politburo position that he had just lost, claiming he had long loathed the positions he served at Mugabe's discretion.

"I take consolation in my past. Kicked out of ZBC (Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation) in 1993, I went on to give Zimbabwe its first digital switch with NetOne and Siemens in 1998, its first broadband," Mutsvangwa said.

"It is business acumen starting with Foreign Affairs deputy minister that unlocked value to multi-billion-dollar loans invested in electricity energy generation at Kariba South and Hwange. I did all the spadework in Beijing [China] well ahead of Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa's breakthrough visit in 2014. All in the same spirit of collaboration as we had done on the China Tobacco investment back in 2004."