adminexercise.
What is, however, new is the physical confrontation that has characterised the holding of district co-ordinating committee elections in some provinces which must surely be a cause for concern for the leadership.
While it is given that any contestation for power is bound to create friction, it is regrettable that members would want to turn the exercise into a combat duel instead of expending energy on the party re-organising and re-energising in light of the impending harmonised elections this year.
Prudence and sensibility must therefore prevail in dealing with errant members either fuelling or causing mayhem in provinces.
Any remedial action must be carried out within the context of what President Mugabe said in a recent speech during the burial of national hero Cde Edison Ncube.
At the burial, President Mugabe bemoaned the continued clashes of Zanu-PF members and urged members to revisit the founding principles of the revolutionary party that have sustained it during and after the liberation struggle.
Indeed, Zanu-PF has historically managed to deal decisively with factional problems that have manifested in the pre- and post-liberation era by constantly referring to its ideological foundational principles of selfless service to the people.
It is this ideological grounding that is either lacking or is not part of the dictum of the new membership that has become part of the revolutionary party in the post-liberation era.
But for the party to be able to deal with factionalism in the new epoch, it is critical that it locates in real terms the genesis of the current physical confrontations that have characterised most district co-ordinating elections.
Besides the absence of ideological orientation, other catalytic factors fuelling factionalism include the lack of an ideological guidepost, tribalism, mere personality differences, the succession issue, corruption, the generational gap of old and emerging leadership and the various social interest groups striving for a stake in the management and control of the revolutionary party.
Over the years, the liberation movement’s membership has ballooned, accepting within its ranks people who simply identify with the party’s pro-majority policies without a clear understanding of its ideological foundational principles.
The ideological foundational principles of Zanu-PF are derived from socialism — modelled along our own social, political and cultural dynamics.
The essential elements of that foundation include discipline, pursuance at all times of pro-majority policies, selfless dedication to serve the masses, anti-imperialistic, nationalistic and total respect of the hierarchical order.
The skirmishes witnessed in Mutare and Masvingo are therefore a true reflection of either lack of knowledge of this ideological foundation or mere errant behaviour by members who have not been exposed to rigorous orientation and vetting.
Isn’t this the right time for Zanu-PF to embark on a serious meditation and introspection in order to rediscover its soul?
It is all good for the finance department to sell as many membership cards as possible in as much as it is better to be always vigilant and ensure members undergo adequate orientation and brief background checks.
Truth be told, the majority of the post-colonial and post-liberation membership lack the slightest idea of the essence of being Zanu-PF.
Another factor that has contributed to the conflagration of factionalism is tribalism. Tribal profiling is so rampant in some provinces that some members had to relocate to their provinces of birth after being tagged as “alien”.
A case in point is the relocation of Cde Paul Munyaradzi Mangwana from Mhondoro Ngezi in Mashonaland West to Masvingo after some leaders in that province opted for a “native” son.
It is the same situation in Mazowe, Mashonaland Central, where there is an unwritten code that anyone not from the Chiweshe area must not be voted into any position. Those fuelling this tribal profiling conveniently disregard the fact that Mazowe is surrounded by farms occupied by new farmers from other provinces.
The natural dictacts of any election is based on the free will of the people to vote into office anyone capable of articulating their concerns regardless of the birthplace of the individual.
Tribalism breeds decadent leadership, which is bent on protecting its own selfish interests instead of being at the service of the people.
So perverse is tribalism that if not uprooted it has the effect of negatively affecting the performance of the party in the coming elections.
The other disturbing cause of factionalism is personality differences emanating from simple detest of an individual purely on reasons that have nothing to do with his or her capacity to lead.
Personal differences must not be allowed to cloud judgment in the selection of individuals to lead the party. What binds individuals as members of the same party must be their belief in the same value system rather then personal differences.
There is also no doubt that the succession issue has had an effect in the cohesion of the party. There seems to be a tendency in the revolutionary movement for people to align themselves within a faction deemed to have leverage of power in the event of change of leadership at the top.
We need not labour on the fact that this tendency is clearly counter-revolutionary for the rules and procedures in electing leadership are clearly stipulated in the party constitution.
Members must realise that the only legitimate faction that everyone must subscribe or align with is that of Zanu-PF and not individuals. An attempt to leverage
oneself with a certain group gives birth to unnecessary fissures and in turn creates an easy entry point for destabilisation.
In bridging the generational gap, the party must as a matter of survival adapt itself to the dynamic changes within the social-political fabric to enhance a healthy osmosis of ideas between the old and youthful members of the party.
The youthful members must as matter of necessity realise that nothing beats experience and equally important is for the old to harness and not antagonise the exuberance of the youth and ensure their energy is channelled towards the articulation and execution of the party policies.
The youth must be treated as an integral part of the main body and avenues must be created for their entry into key decision-making positions within the structures of the party.
It is also important to highlight the fact that varying social classes that make up the membership of the revolutionary party have also been the source of conflicts and contradictions.
War veterans, ex-detainees, the academia and businesspeople must find common ground and not fuel segmentation in electing leadership at cell, ward, district or provincial levels.
It is not good, for example, for war veterans to field their own candidates as being separate from the generality of the membership. Such stratification creates the impression of special treatment.
Corruption is another scourge that seems to have imbedded itself in the revolutionary movement where those with financial muscle resort to vote-buying to position themselves in strategic structures of the party.
It is instructive that we quote the Zanu-PF election manifesto of 1990 as a reference point to clearly illustrate the party’s position on corruption.
“The party and Government are totally opposed to any form of corruption. We appointed the Sandura Commission to investigate certain allegations that had been made, and precisely to emphasise our strong opposition to corruption. The party further requires all leaders of the party to abide strictly by the leadership code which was adopted by the Second Congress in 1984.
“Those leaders, who take part in any form of corruption or irregular practices, or those who deviate from the leadership code, will no longer be accepted or allowed to continue holding positions of leadership.”
Of course, we all know that some of aspects the leadership code have become moribund given the dynamics of the land reform programme and the indigenisation drive.
However, it is my view that the party should have ductiled the leadership code to be in tune with current dynamics. The party has over the years tended to concentrate on the business of the day instead of nurturing its essence as captured in the popular liberation song “Kune Nzira Dzemagamba”.
In the final analysis, the positive development borne out of the current district co-ordinating elections is the realisation amongst all sundry that Zanu-PF is on the
resurgence given the avalanche of people scrambling to represent it at district level.
Zanu-PF is a mass party with more than 5 million registered members drawn from all strata of our society.
It is this membership that must be guarded jealously by ensuring that all contradictions are handled within the confines of the party’s constitution and insulate the party from reactionary forces.
Again the preamble to the 1990 Zanu-PF election manifesto is spot on; “The forces of reaction, division and retrogression which were soundly defeated-retreated into the background but they continue to regroup with new tactics and new faces. They seize on disgruntled elements of the ruling party who have lost positions in which they totally failed to perform or target unemployed youths to try to recover lost ground.”
I have no doubt that if guided by the party’s foundational values; Zanu-PF will emerge stronger and rejuvenated upon the completion of the restructuring exercise.
Online Reporter