Zanu PF night of long knives in Masvingo

Zanu PF night of long knives in Masvingo

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By Lebo Nkatazo

ZIMBABWE'S ruling Zanu PF party has suspended a senior official from Masvingo province following accusations that he "worked against the party".

Samuel Mumbengegwi, a Senator and Minister of State for Indigenisation and Empowerment suspended Issaih Masvayamwando Shumba from the party after allegations that he campaigned for independent candidates during senate elections last November.

Shumba is the Deputy Minister for Education, Sport and Culture and Member of the House of Assembly for Mwenezi. He was Mumbengegwi's deputy as provincial chairperson for Masvingo until his suspension when the allegations were first made against him.

Shumba received his letter of suspension Sunday at a Zanu PF provincial meeting chaired by Mumbengegwi.

The same provincial meeting suspended other members together with Shumba.

Those suspended are: Saunders Magwiza who was a Zanun PF councilor for Ward 2 in Chivi (suspended for three years); Philiph Hungwe (a brother of former Masvingo governor Josiah Hungwe) (suspended for three years); Philemon Maramba who was Zanu PF councilor for Ward 3 in Chivi (suspended for three years). Councilors for wards 4, 5, 13, 14 and 16 in Chivi (whose names were yet to be received) were removed from their positions.

The political commissar for the Zanu PF Chivi District Coordinating Committee (DCC), Tinos Huruva, who was the campaign manager for Enita Maziriri for the March 2005 parliamentary elections, was suspended from the party for five years.

In Mwenezi, councilors for wards 3 and 12 were removed from their positions.

The Member of the House of Assembly for Chivi North, Enita Maziriri faced the same charges and was found guilty but got away with only a reprimand.

In a bizarre development, two traditional chiefs in Masvingo, Chief Shumba and Chief Murinye, were dragged into the saga and charged with the same offense of campaigning for independent candidates in the Senate elections.

The two traditional chiefs were given prohibition orders not to do Zanu PF work or participate in the activities of the party.

Chief Chivi was so incensed with the suspensions of councilors and others from his area that he went to the Masvingo meeting on Sunday with a high powered delegation of his headmen.

But his suffered the indignity of being chased away from the meeting together with his accompanying headmen.

Sources said Mumbengegwi was using the "Tsholotsho ghost" to get even with people who did not campaign for him in the primary elections for the March 2005 Zanu PF primaries for Chivi North constituency which he lost to Enita Maziriri.
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