The faction’s spokesman Gabriel Chaibva attended the inauguration ceremony, but his party now says he did so in his personal capacity.

Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga, the faction’s deputy secretary general told New Zimbabwe.com on Monday that government officials had specifically requested the attendance of several senior officials, including Mutambara, but their position was that it was inappropriate as they saw his election victory as a “fraud”.

She said: “I received a call early on Sunday morning from the President’s Office. They said they wanted me to extend an invitation to Mutambara, secretary general Welshman Ncube, Paul Themba Nyathi, Fletcher Dulini Ncube and Gibson Sibanda.

“We believed it to be a joke at that time, but our position was that no-one was going to go to this thing. No-one would even consider it.”

She said she became aware of the seriousness of the invitation at around 9am when Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa called her and asked for contact details for officials in the Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC including Elton Mangoma, Tsvangirai and secretary general Tendai Biti.

“At that point,” she said, “it became clear that they were not only inviting us but the other side as well. But our position remained unchanged – we would not attend.”

Misihairabwi said she was shocked later in the day when a Zanu PF official called her and told her they were “waiting for us”.

“I informed him that we were not attending the ceremony, at which point he mentioned that Chaibva was already there. That was quite surprising because Chaibva had earlier spoken to the secretary general and the party position was clear to him. We can only assume he went in his personal capacity.”

Chaibva could now face a rap from the party’s top brass.

President Mugabe won a controversial sixth term in a presidential election run-off held last Friday after Tsvangirai said he was pulling out because of intimidation and violence against his supporters. Election officials said his pullout was a nullity, and his name remained on the ballot paper.