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THE ruling Zanu-PF party needs to be united now more than ever following its historic victory in last year’s general elections. After pulverising its main opponent — the MDC-T — the vanguard party atoned for its earlier poor performance with a victory that was equated to the 1980 electoral win. Indeed the mood in the country after July 2013 was akin to the euphoria which engulfed the country after independence. The magnitude of Zanu-PF’s win coupled with President Mugabe’s total annihilation of MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai silenced critics of the revolutionary party locally and internationally. The key to that famous victory was unity of purpose and five years of slogging it out in the trenches where the ruling party left no stone unturned as it sought a reversal of fortunes.
In short, Zanu-PF went back to basics and reconnected with the people in an unprecedented way. Its manifesto, crafted around the party’s people-centred policies of indigenisation and economic empowerment, resonated with the majority of Zimbabweans who responded by giving it an overwhelming majority and mandate to govern for another five-year term.
Naturally, the people now expect the party to deliver on its electoral promises and steer the country to prosperity. They expect to see a consolidation of the economic recovery recorded since 2008 through the adoption of home-grown policies.
To do this, the ruling party needs to keep focused with its eyes firmly on the ball. It needs not be sidetracked by internal squabbles when the people of Zimbabwe have reaffirmed their support for it. We believe the party is wise enough to realise the futility of divisions and factionalism at a time when its arch-nemesis — the MDC-T — is in a comatose state.
The MDC is virtually dead and buried and the announcement by Tendai Biti yesterday that his faction would form another party put paid to any hopes of resuscitation of that beleaguered party. Tsvangirai is on the ropes and Bulawayo provincial chairman, Gorden Moyo’s resignation from the party on Friday is another nail in the coffin of the opposition movement.
Against this scenario, Zanu-PF must realise that it has no opposition to talk about and its mission should be to serve the Zimbabwean people to the best of its abilities and further consolidate its rule come the 2018 elections. We are under no illusions that Zanu-PF — just like any other organisation — has people with ambitions to be in leadership positions but there are set down rules and regulations to be followed by those aspiring for political office.
President Mugabe has declared that there is no vacancy for the highest office in the land and party cadres should heed his wise counsel and patiently await their turn. The President has also spoken strongly against factionalism and we believe that disciplined party followers will take his words seriously.
At the weekend, Zanu-PF leaders in Matabeleland North and Bulawayo held induction workshops in the city where the overriding message was that of unity. Leaders were urged to shun divisions and factionalism and embrace unity.
Speaking during the Matabeleland North induction workshop at Elangeni Training Centre, Zanu-PF national chairman Cde Simon Khaya Moyo, challenged leaders of the said factions in the party to shape up or ship out of the revolutionary party.
Cde Moyo, who is also the Senior Minister of State in the President’s Office, said Zanu-PF’s constitution had no provision for divisive elements and urged party members to fight hard against divisions which should be nipped in the bud before they tear the party apart. “We must fight very hard against factionalism. I often hear people say they belong to such and such a faction; they belong to so and so in the party. That is wrong. No one owns anyone in the party. All I know is that we all belong to God.
“Everyone belongs to the party and we should all work towards building unity. The key is unity, unity and unity. You will recall my message in Chinhoyi last December at our National People’s Conference that as a revolutionary party we must assiduously continue to fight against imposition of candidates in any election at every level, factionalism and corruption.
“Factionalism has affected the party before by splitting the vote, thus it should be nipped in the bud,” he said.
We agree with his assertions and implore the ruling party to focus on delivering on its electoral promises through implementing its economic blueprint — the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-economic Transformation.
Online Reporter