‘Inclusive Govt is totally dysfunctional’

with the party’s national chairman and the chair of the conference’s co-ordinating committee Cde Simon Khaya Moyo (SK) to talk about this and other issues.

LG: It is about a month before the Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference. How is this conference going to be different from other conferences?
SK: This is going to be the 12th National People’s Conference. It must be borne in mind that this conference rotates from province to province annually except for a congress which is held once in five years and is elective as regards to leadership. This coming conference is going to be held in Bulawayo from 6 to 10 December and this is different from other conferences because it will be the last one before a general election to be held next year. The President has even described it as a mini-congress. We expect about 6 000 delegates as well as representatives of former liberation movements and other sister parties in the region to grace the conference.

LG: Can we expect fireworks from the conference?
SK: We expect a very interactive conference whereby people can express themselves freely on all matters affecting their daily lives. This is why we have deliberately come up with a theme, “Defend national sovereignty, consolidate indigenisation and economic empowerment”.

LG: We hear there are many people vying for the top post at the conference.
SK: Well, people are free, we are a free country. We are a revolutionary party which brought about democracy to everyone but we are also a party guided by a constitution and the constitution clearly states that whoever is elected President of the party at congress becomes the party’s candidate for any Presidential elections before the next congress. President Mugabe was unanimously elected the President of our revolutionary party at our last congress in December 2009 and the next congress will only be in December 2014 so all this speculation about elections of a President and other leaders at this coming conference is totally misplaced, totally uninformed and perhaps mischievous.

LG: The rumour mill has it that President Mugabe is considering stepping down at the forthcoming conference. Any truth in such reports?
SK: That can only be answered by the President. I have not heard of it.
LG: We are hearing more of Zanu-PF succession from the private media and nothing from the party itself.
SK: We also hear from the private media. Maybe they can tell us more, they seem to be more Zanu-PF than us.

LG: Some people say there is factionalism in Zanu-PF. If indeed it exists, how have you managed to keep it under wraps?
SK: Well, there is no evidence of factionalism in Zanu-PF but if people hold different views on a given subject surely it cannot be termed factionalism, it is diversity of opinion and must be encouraged but in the end the party must come up with a common position on any issue.

LG: Are the WikiLeaks, dead and buried?
SK: I know very little about the WikiLeaks. I only hear about them, read about them but certainly I have not taken time to digest their content and implications.
LG: But as someone who has been a diplomat for a very long time. How credible are the leaked cables and are they going to be discussed at the conference?
SK: Frankly, I don’t know their credibility or non-credibility; that needs thorough research and informed analysis. I don’t think they are a subject of the conference. The important thing about the conference is what is entailed in the theme of the conference. We must defend the sovereignty of this country at every time and we must consolidate our indigenisation and economic empowerment policy. We are by the way the only party in this country with people-centred policies and programmes. We are also the only party with a very clear motto of unity, peace and development.

LG: So are you saying those mentioned in the WikiLeaks have escaped censure?
SK: I am not responsible for that. I am only national chairman of this revolutionary party and the issue you are raising is not part of my mandate.
LG: You are on record saying the inclusive Government should come to an end. Why do you say so?
SK: The inclusive Government is totally dysfunctional. It’s a three-legged pot with two deformed legs and only one solid one and therefore is not giving the pot proper balance to cook a nourishing stew. We are in fact surviving on borrowed time since this Government should have ended 18 months or so after its inception. We have overstayed our people’s hospitality because some colleagues have been dragging their feet to conclude the constitution making process.

LG: But we have heard both Zanu-PF and MDC-T saying the inclusive Government was working and then say a different thing altogether at other forums.
SK: It is limping. You can walk when you are limping that is what we are. You can imagine a situation where the illegal sanctions imposed on us because we dared embark on the land reform programme. They are permitting half the Cabinet to travel all over the world and the other half is not allowed to travel to Europe and the US. How do you operate in such an environment as a team? These illegal sanctions are not targeted at all, they are comprehensive. We have no lines of credit from the West, no balance of payment support, no access to spare parts for various industries rendering thousands and thousands of people out of work including those from parastatals who have been slapped with these illegal sanctions. Lest we forget these sanctions were called for by the MDC-T, a partner for that matter in Government. It’s absolutely ridiculous to pretend that we are pulling in one direction.

LG: Zanu-PF wants elections by March next year, how feasible is that when one looks at the stages the constitution making process still has to go through?
SK: Zanu-PF wanted elections this year. This was one of the resolutions passed at the National People’s Conference in Mutare last year. Indeed the constitution should have been long concluded but because our colleagues from the MDC formations tasted honey by being part of Government, they have continuously dragged their feet to conclude the process, some of course, work on instructions from their masters in the West but during the constitution outreach programme, people spoke eloquently of what constitution they wanted. We cannot deny them their wishes. We can not also afford to run with the hares and chase the hounds. We must be principled and conclude this process to move to a referendum and to elections. So March is not a far-fetched proposition, if we all want elections.

LG: In the 2008 harmonised elections, Zanu-PF candidates from local government to the President got different numbers of votes from the same polling station. What do you attribute this discrepancy to?
SK: I wouldn’t know how widespread that phenomenon was, except to say it’s certainly anomalous. What I know of, certainly is that there was so much apathy in that election where in many cases, in a constituency with 30 000 voters, only 7 000 or so voted meaning that 23 000 or so, stayed away. On our side we attribute that to imposition of candidates and this should never be repeated in the coming elections.

LG: But this has been said time and again but come primary elections there are always complaints from the electorate saying candidates have been imposed. What mechanisms have you put in place to make sure it does not happen again in the coming elections?
SK: I don’t think it has been pronounced as of late since the Mutare conference. It is now being said with thunder from the entire leadership and the message is getting to our people loud and clear.

LG: What role can the youth play in the party?

SK: The youth are the vanguard of any revolution, they have the energy, they have the capacity to undertake any given mission but they must always be disciplined taking into account that they are the future leaders of this country. They must act responsibly at all times. We have therefore, as a party, recognised that the youth league is a very key component of our structures. We have deliberately said for one to be a youth, one must be below 30 years of age and we include in this definition, all youths at learning institutions. They must be equipped with the necessary education, skills and benefit from those who lead them particularly the older generation.

LG: What about the Generation 40 concept?
SK: I know nothing about that, absolutely nothing.

LG: Zanu-PF has not been doing well in Matabeleland during elections. What could be the reason for this and are there any mechanisms that you have put in place to reclaim your support?
SK: I talked about apathy and there has been very heavy apathy in that part of the country when it comes to elections. I can assure you there are some members who are seating in that Parliament who won by 15 votes where in a constituency of 35 000 registered voters only 2 000 voted. So that does not by any definition show that the party lost support. Our duty is to encourage our people to go and vote but they must also know that without their vote this country can easily revert to a neo-colony. I appeal to our people to register and vote in their numbers in the coming elections. This will be their only passport to ensure that they ultimately control the natural resources of this country through the Zanu-PF policy of Indigenisation and economic empowerment. As we were our own political liberators, so we will be our own economic liberators. We are revamping all structures of the party and indeed it is our policies and programmes which have meaning to the people that will encourage people to go and vote.

LG: Some people in Matabeleland have accused the party leadership from the region for not doing enough to bring development in the region.
SK: Sometimes these things are said by enemies of this country who believe in the doctrine of divide and rule. The people of Matabeleland are wise enough to know the truth.

LG: There also seems to be discord in the party leadership especially those from the areas that were affected by the 1980s disturbances. What is the party’s correct position on the events?
SK: Well, there is no discord among the leadership of our party. It has been said time and again that those developments were most regrettable. I believe the establishment of the Organ on National Healing and Reconciliation chaired by Vice President Nkomo with a Minister each from the two MDC formations are mandated to address this matter and other similar matters. No one should use those sad developments for political mileage because that will be taking the people affected too much for granted.

LG: There has been sporadic cases of violence especially in Harare. What could be the reasons for this?
SK: There are misguided elements in our society. As a party we abhor any form of violence and the President has spoken on this subject very eloquently. It would appear that some of this violence is seasonally timed by the perpetrators whenever for instance there is a major international conference taking place, be it in the region, continent or outside we experience violence mainly perpetrated by the MDC-T. It was evident also at their congress, When the President opened the Fourth Session of the Seventh Parliament of Zimbabwe, there were violent clashes outside that August House. There was also violence when the MDC-T celebrated their 12th anniversary at Gwanzura stadium amongst their supporters in front of invited dignitaries including diplomats. We also saw violence very recently in Harare, sporadic cases of violence when the South African facilitation team was here, so some of these acts are well calculated to give an impression to the outside world that we are not ready for free and fair elections. My appeal is that violence has no positive dividend so we must all refrain from violence.

LG: You are accusing MDC-T of violence but they say it is actually Zanu-PF youths who instigate this violence with immunity. They say Zanu-PF is controlling the police.
SK: They have their own Minister who is a co-Minister of Home Affairs Theresa Makone who should tell them the truth because what they are saying is absolute hogwash.

LG: Since you took over as the party national chairman, you seem to be interested in re-engaging the countries that imposed sanctions on our country and the party leadership. What is motivating this?
SK: I meet various leaders including ambassadors in my office here at their request. As a former diplomat myself, I cherish dialogue and always want to listen to the views of other people. Listening is a massive tool and according to the book of Proverbs, “Fear of God is a school in skilled living. First you learn humility and then experience glory”. We must therefore always be humble and I will continue to entertain as many people as I can meet because by the end of the day, we are one humanity.