Chiwenga, Mutsvangwa feud rocks Zanu PF

The battle to succeed President Emmerson Mnangagwa that has seen the emergence of two distinct factions in Zanu PF has taken a nasty turn following a shocking tirade by the ruling party’s spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa against Vice President Constantino Chiwenga.

Mutsvangwa allegedly told an online platform that Mnangagwa did not want Chiwenga to succeed him and that the 2030 campaign that has divided

Zanu PF was part of a strategy to keep the former army general away from the presidency.

Mnangagwa’s former advisor said the ruling party’s number two in command was not fit for the top office as he ridiculed everything from his war history to educational achievements.

The authenticity of the recording could not be immediately verified as Mutsvangwa was not reachable on his mobile phone yesterday, but the remarks drew a sharp rebuke from an organisation that says it supports Chiwenga.

The General Chiwenga Voluntary Supporters Association (GCVSA) accused Zimbabwe’s former ambassador to China of being on a “treacherous mission.”

“His recent reckless utterances against General Constantino Guveya Dominic Nyikadzino Chiwenga (Rtd) are not mere political blunders, but part of a well-orchestrated agenda to destabilise Zimbabwe’s leadership and advance a shadowy 2030 succession plot that seeks to sideline genuine revolutionaries in favour of Western-backed stooges,” read the statement signed by GCVSA secretary general Ntokozo Msipha.

“His attacks on General Chiwenga are not personal, but part of a broader scheme dictated by those who seek to install puppets in positions of power while eliminating true patriots.

“Mutsvangwa has chosen to fight his battles with gossip and slander because he lacks the courage to stand on the battlefield of real warriors.”

Mutsvangwa’s tirade against Chiwenga came a few days after Zanu PF expelled central committee member Blessed Geza for demanding Mnangagwa’s resignation on allegations of incompetence, nepotism and failing to rein in corrupt elements.

Several other Zanu PF officials were also either suspended or fired alongside Geza on charges of promoting factionalism and attacking the ruling party leadership.

Zanu PF chairperson Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri last week told a top meeting of the ruling party that some officials were weaponing the ruling party’s resolution to extend Mnangagwa’s term to 2030 to fan factionalism.

Muchinguri-Kashiri claimed that the situation was now a “national security threat” as she seemed to be taking aim at ruling party officials that have been publicly attacking Chiwenga over his stance on the 2030 agenda.

“It is shameful for any leader to always be seized with primitive and sometimes barbaric political bickering and chicanery which divides the party,” she said.

“Such behaviour is a bonus arsenal for our opposition forces.

“The consequence of such a smear campaign amongst ourselves is the propagation of artificial factionalism.

“Our president and entire presidium must be protected by shunning factionalism, which is a mere figment of imagination by self-serving individuals.

“This then degenerates into a national security risk.”

Mutsvangwa last year said that Chiwenga wrongly believed that he was Mnangagwa’s anointed successor.

His latest comments have exposed the widening rift in the ruling party over Mnangagwa’s succession.

Despite Mnangagwa’s insistence that he will not be persuaded to stay in power beyond 2028, Zanu PF commissar Munyaradzi Machacha and other top officials have been telling ruling party officials that there is no going back on the resolution.

Machacha yesterday referred The Standard to Zanu PF secretary for legal affairs Patrick Chinamasa when he was asked about the ruling party’s plans on the resolution given Mnangagwa’s public position on the matter.

Chinamasa was not reachable on his mobile phone yesterday. Standardp