Mnangagwa leads faction not Mujuru, says Mutasa

Politics
ZANU PF internal fights escalated yesterday with the party’s secretary for administration Diydmus Mutasa taking a dig at Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and Information minister Jonathan Moyo describing them as divisive elements.

ZANU PF internal fights escalated yesterday with the party’s secretary for administration Diydmus Mutasa taking a dig at Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and Information minister Jonathan Moyo describing them as divisive elements. OBEY MANAYITI STAFF REPORTER

He warned that members found guilty of working to destroy the party from within risked annihilation.

Addressing party youths during a no-holds barred meeting in Mutare yesterday, Mutasa warned party members against factionalism saying anyone found aligning with a particular faction would be “fished out”.

“You said there are two factions, one led by Amai (Joice) Mujuru and the other one by Emmerson Mnangagwa,” Mutasa said.

“Let me say what I have always said that Mujuru has no faction. Mujuru faction, if it is there, is all of us because she is our leader. If she wanted factions she should leave her post first and do factions. She is not doing that.

“There is only one faction led by Mnangagwa because a faction is described as a group of few people who will be working outside the majority.

“This is what I have learnt when President (Robert) Mugabe said I had gone to school. Yes, I went to school to learn about that, to learn politics.”

He added: “Mnangagwa is my friend and we spent two years together in prison. If he asks me about this I will repeat what I have said because it’s the truth.”

Turning to the hot issue of “weevils” that have reportedly penetrated Zanu PF, Mutasa said: “You were talking about the issue of weevils here. Way back we used to treat weevils by spraying gamatox (pesticide) and they would all die. Our weevils, if you know about them, which we are castigating now, please apply gamatox on them.

“If you do that we will be left with one camp and not to say there is this camp and that camp,” said Mutasa in apparent reference to Moyo who was over the weekend described by Mugabe as a weevil bent on destroying the party from within.

Both Mujuru and Mnangagwa have vehemently denied accusations that they lead factions angling to succeed Mugabe.

Mnangagwa in 2012 sued Alpha Media Holdings over an article published by the Zimbabwe Independent that allegedly insinuated that he led a Zanu PF faction.