adminCletus Mushanawani in Harare
MANICALAND last Wednesday scored a major success after five of its cadres were appointed in the Politburo as secretaries and deputies respectively.
Cdes Patrick Chinamasa (legal affairs), Oppah Muchinguri (transport and social welfare) and Chris Mushohwe (economic affairs) were appointed full secretaries, while Cdes Kudzi Chipanga (youth affairs) and Monica Mutsvangwa (information and publicity) were appointed as deputies by President Mugabe in a new-look Politburo team which some people described as the A-Team or Dream Team.
Only those appointed for full secretarial posts will sit in the Politburo, while the deputies were tasked with the responsibilities of assisting their bosses.
The Politburo team, which was full of surprises, saw Cdes Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko being appointed Vice Presidents and are expected to be sworn in today (Friday).
In an interview soon after the announcement, Cde Muchinguri said their major task was to unite people who were now divided along factional lines.
“Zanu-PF members have been divided for a long time and it is now time for us to unite everyone. A culture of fear was now the order of the day as some leaders had become the law unto themselves.
“Dictatorship was now rife and I think President Mugabe did his homework very well in coming up with this team of tried and tested cadres which should move with supersonic speed in delivering on all the Congress resolutions.
“Come January, we will hit the ground running because it is now time for action. We should go back to the people from the grassroots and explain our policies to them so that they will embrace them for us to move together,” said Cde Muchinguri.
She called for tolerance among all party members, saying some people were being blindly used by people who wanted to topple President Mugabe.
“This is time to look back and reflect on where you stand. We know that some bad apples were thrown out of the Zanu-PF basket, but some of the affected people were blindly used by greedy, corrupt and selfish people who wanted power at all costs.
“We now have one centre of power and this is the most ideal situation because it will be easier to whip people into line than in the past where there were two centres of power and some people capitalised on that to mislead the masses. Yes, we can fight among ourselves, but Zanu-PF is well-known for offering a hand of reconciliation to people who transgress, the reason we celebrate the Unity Accord every year.
“The party is good at managing internal conflict before it gets out of hand and the same will be applied this time again to unite people,” she said.
Cde Muchinguri said every province needs to come with a programme of action that would be reviewed every now and then.
Politburo débutante, Cde Mushohwe, was over the moon with his appointment, which he said he never dreamt of.
“I can assure the nation that this newly appointed Politburo team is the best ever team that President Mugabe has assembled as it is made up of men and women who can steer the Zanu-PF ship to safe waters. I think this time President Mugabe did his homework very well and should be applauded for that. I am confident that this Politburo, which was full of surprises, will live to its billing.
“There was a lot of speculation during the whole week, with people coming up with different lists of office-bearers, but look at President Mugabe’s shrewdness!
“He managed to come up with workaholics like Dr Ignatius Chombo as the new secretary for administration.
“In short, the appointed cadres are tried and tested, who believe in Zanu-PF policies and ideology. They are committed to the party’s cause,” he said. Cde Mushohwe said it was an honour for Manicaland to have five people in the Politburo.
“I want to thank President Mugabe for showing great confidence in the people of Manicaland by appointing five people from the province into senior party positions. This is an honour to the province and we should be grateful, considering that the Politburo has been trimmed.
“However, all those appointees should not sit on their laurels, but deliver since it was made clear to us by President Mugabe that there would be constant performance reviews. I am also very excited about the composition of the Presidium as all those appointed are goal-getters.
“Cde Mnangagwa has never disappointed since the time of the liberation struggle and his appointment should be hailed and celebrated by all patriotic Zimbabweans,” he said.
On his feelings about appointment to the Politburo, Cde Mushohwe, said: “This is my early Christmas present and surely I will celebrate with my family. It is also an honour to the province, my constituency and the whole Mushohwe family,” he said.
Cde Chinamasa could only say: “I am excited and I am not in a position to comment now.” Central Committee member, Cde Supa Mandiwanzira, described the Politburo team as the Dream Team that would deliver on the Zim-Asset.
“We are excited that the Presidium was trimmed simply to ensure efficiency. This will ensure robustness in everything.
“The major focus now is on addressing the economic challenges facing the nation and with this team of sharp-shooters you will never go wrong.
“I can surely tell you that there will be administrative efficiency; something that was now lacking in our party. We are expecting big things from this team. The party is now rejuvenated,” he said.
Another Central Committee member and Mutare Senator, Cde Judith Mawire, said the new Politburo team was strong and would deliver on Congress resolutions.
“Their biggest challenge is to work towards uniting people. Divisions did not start now, but date back to the days of the liberation struggle. If we managed to solve them in the past, we can manage to do it now. President Mugabe is well known for his forgiving heart and those who were pruned from the party should take time to reflect on where they went wrong and correct their mistakes.
“Maybe one day they will bounce back.
“We should all unite to fulfil election promises because we were spending a lot of time fighting for leadership positions at the expense of addressing issues affecting the economy. We should all work towards the successful implementation of Zim-Asset. Like what President Mugabe always says, peace, peace, peace and peace should always prevail,” said Cde Mawire.
Online Reporter