MDC-T intelligence brief exonerate CIO and Zanu PF

The three Mashonaland provinces have over the years proven to be the soul and mainstay of Zanu PF. Any serious opposition party that seeks to dislodge Zanu PF has to make inroads into this region. This was clearly evidenced by the 2008 election results.

Judging from the MDC-T Intelligence Brief, the party's leader Morgan Richard Tsvangirai is aware of this reality Mashonaland region has played in the Zimbabwean body politic. Whenever the MDC-T complains about NIKUV and many other rigging realities, one is left confused on how such damage could be meted to the opposition considering the amount of intelligence that was at its disposal.

The elections results of Mashonaland West province is a clear indication that the MDC-T went to sleep. It is clear that the Organising Deopartment did not make use of the intelligence that they received or Tsvangirai kept the intelligence to himself.

Below is an unedited intelligence report for Mashonaland West classified as private and confidential prepared on 24 July 2012.

PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL
24/06/2012

MASHONALAND WEST REPORT
We went to Mash West to do structure verification and card sales but we also discovered that there were a lot of things happening. If you may allow me space to take you back and narrate to you the background of the province. This report is based on a matter of fact without fear or favour but as it is.

The previous executive of the Province was characterised by in fighting that led to the Provincial Executive Committee passing a vote of no confidence in the Provincial Chairperson Mr. Japhet Karemba. They accused the chairman for being inconsistent and unprincipled among other things. However a number of District Chairpersons stood by the chairperson reasoning that the vote of no confidence was actually invalid as it was unconstitutional. This standoff lead to serious in fights that pitted the Provincial executive  and a couple of district Chairpersons against the Provincial  Chairperson Karemba and a number of District Chairpersons. The in fights were so serious that at one time a section of youths supporting the chairperson sealed the doors to the then Provincial Office and in retaliation more than 70 youths and District Chairpersons were suspended by the Provincial Executive. This then lead to two definitive factions one that supported the Provincial Chairperson and one that was against the Provincial Chairperson. After the Provincial executive was locked out of the office they then regrouped and started meeting at Doctor Matarutse's surgery in Chinhoyi.Towards congress the Provincial Executive launched its re-election strategy at Martha Matarutse's farm in Mhangura where they wined and dined enjoying a braai of pork meat hence the Nickname Zvinguruve became their identity. Meanwhile the team that supported Karemba decided to take their fight a step higher by deciding to contest the provincial executive in the pending provincial congress. The team then converged at Zvipani Business Centre  inHurungwe West where they made a declaration that has come to be known as "The Zvipani Declaration" to weed out corruption and bad governance within the Province and at the same time uphold the doctrine of constitutionalism. They even went a step further to allocate each other positions they wished to contest but they collectively  agreed that JaphetKaremba would be retained as the Chairperson to give the group a semblance of legitimacy since all but 2 people namely Karemba and Garadhi had swithched to Zvipani.

The Battle begins on the  Run up to the Provincial Congress. On the run up to the Provincial Congress the Provincial Executive began to do District congresses staring with urban constituencies where they believed that more delegates would come from during the Provincial Congress. While the Zvipani team used its strong financial muscle to mobilize on the ground mostly in the rural constituencies. The ChairpersonKaremba would Preside over most of the rural District Congresses in the rural Districts where in most cases proper electoral colleges were not available because there was no such databases from the Provincial office. During the Ward congresses most ward structures were appointees who were appointed to suit certain interests from both Zvinguruve and Zvipani. But due to the financialmuscle of Zvipani they could go down to ward level and even to branch level and appoint structures for District Congresses as the case in Districts such as Hurungwe West. This ultimately led to an issue of illegitimacy of Districts such as Chegutu, Chinhoyi and Mhangura.

Both factions drew their support from National members who also had interests in the ultimate support they required from this particular Province which was said to be unpredictable because of the absence of a Mashonaland West representative in the National Executive Committee. Therefore it was an issue of which faction would win the Provincial Elections.
Elections

The Provincial Congress was a two horse race with just 2 distinctive factions, Zvinguruve and Zvipani. Delegates to the Provincial Congress were therefore  not entirely a genuine Electoral College. Leader Lucia Matibenga Presided over the Congress and was efficient and fair in handling the volatile Congress. The outcome washowever a bone of contention with the Zvinguruve faction expressing displeasure and suspecting foul play. The Zvinguruve camp turned out to be bitter losers going to the extent of vowing not to recognise the new order despite the endorsement of the new Provincial Executive by the National standing Committee. The new Provincial order then attended the 3rd National Congress in Bulawayo.
Aftermath of the 3rd Congress the formation of Pioneer Voluntary Forum

After the National Congress in Bulawayo, it became apparent to the Zvinguruve faction that the new executive was now official. The group then decided to regroup and destabilize the districts where they had sympathisers within the structures. And in the districts that had been disputed during the Provincial Congress. For instance in Chegutu West the group joined forces with Charlton Hwende the Provincial Rep and Wilson Makanyaire the Provincial Organising Secretary and managed to misinform Hon. Chamisa just before the Provincial Peace rally held in Chegutu West that the District was not properly structured. This is despite the fact that the Provincial Organising Secretary had made submissions to the contrary to a full Provincial Executive Committee meeting barely a month earlier. This led to the dissolution of the District despite a standing resolution of the Provincial Executive Committee that was made based on an organising report presented by the Provincial Organising Secretary.

It was after the re-election of the current leadership in Chegutu West that the Zvinguruve group reorganised and launched the Pioneer Voluntary Forum (PVF). Investigations show that National Executive members Elias Mudzuri and ConciliaChinanzavana have been fingered in Mashonaland West as the representative of PVF within the highest decision making body of the party. PVF has provincial structures and have an adopted constitution. It has contact people in the structures of the party an example being ward 10 chairperson for the Chinhoyi District who doubles up as the PVF District Chairperson  for Chinhoyi district.

This group says that there are a group of disgruntled pioneer members of the MDC who feel they were neglected by the current leadership. So they claim to have interest of the party at heart but at the same time have an established parallel structure at provincial and district level especially in Hurungwe Central, Mhangura, Chegutu West, Chinhoyi and Zvimba South.

Currently there are individuals in the current PEC who have merged with this group to destabilise structures in the name of personal interest.The pioneer group has a slogan  code named 2016 AGENDA.This is where everything in Mash West started.This  group intends to build up structures within the MDC structures but they will run as parallel.The aim is to disempower the MDC structures at all levels.Once the exercise becomes successfull in Mash west they would then cascade it down to other provinces.This group has just arrived in Kariba today 24/6/12 and has requested to meet the kariba district executive.Kariba district refused to meet the delegation.The party has to take this report seriously before more damage is done, especially on the run up to the primary elections.Disturbances on party programmes shall be on rise.Physical fight shall erupt and this will embarrass the party more.