Expect bigger, better from Zanu-PF’

President Mnangagwa’s huge “business rally” in Masvingo on Friday is a precursor to full-scale election campaign mobilisation rallies that will be held soon.

Zanu-PF’s Masvingo provincial chairperson Cde Ezra Chadzamira told The Sunday Mail yesterday that President Mnangagwa had only visited the province for business engagements.

Before the rally at Mucheke B Arena, the Head of State and Government toured Shabanie Mashaba Mines and Cold Storage Company, which Government is resuscitating.

Friday’s bumper crowd, Cde Chadzamira noted, showed that the province had the numbers to drive the party to victory in the July 30, 2018 harmonised elections.

“We are very happy that the President visited the province and left a message which is centred on the economy,” he said.

“What is most pleasing is that the visit was more of a business visit as he toured Shabanie Mashaba Mine, Cold Storage Company, as well as other business opportunities that are in the province, but our supporters turned out in their numbers.

“We have the Tugwi-Mokosi Dam and Tongaat Hulett, Bikita Minerals and other mining ventures that can stimulate economic growth in the province that the President highlighted . . . he never anticipated such a huge turnout.

“We are a province that was most affected by divisional politics that saw former senior party members like Dzikamai Mavhaire, Kudakwashe Bhasikiti, Walter Mzembi and many others being ejected from Zanu-PF.

“However, the figures at the rally go to show that no individual can boast to say they control the people. The people have demonstrated that they rally behind Zanu-PF, and not individuals.”

Cde Chadzamira said he was confident the ruling party would retain all 26 parliamentary seats in the province at the polls.

“We expect the President to return for the actual election campaign rally. But he used his visit to tell the party that we are supposed to campaign under the mantra of economy first and politics later,” he said.

“As a country and province, we had suffered years of economic decline and the President is serious of ending the suffering many of our people have endured over the past two decades.”