Popular Zanu PF politician, George Vhengere and 17 others who participated in the 2023 harmonised elections as independent candidates have been expelled from the party, national party chairperson, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri has said.
Vhengere contested as an independent in Gutu East Constituency after he won party primaries but was sidelined to allow Benjamin Ganyiwa who was favoured by party gurus like Lovemore Matuke to stand.
Muchinguri – Kashiri told the 20th National People’s Conference in Gweru last week that the party has invoked its statutes where any member who stands as an independent is automatically expelled.
“During the 2023 harmonized general elections, some members contested as independent candidates in the national assembly and local authority categories. By doing so, the National Disciplinary Committee noted that the members had automatically expelled themselves from the party as stipulated in Article 3, Section 17 (2) as well as Article 550 (11) of the Party Constitution,” reads part of the report.
Some notable affected bigwigs are Thomas Munjoma (Mutare West), Zivanai Peter Musanhu (Mt Darwin West), Eunice Mangwende (Murehwa North), Tafadzwa Shumba (Mwenezi West), Jeremiah Ndlukuwani (Gokwe Chireya) and Siphathisiwe Mathema (Nkayi North).
The development sent a strong message to potential offenders who may consider running as independent candidates in future elections.
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