In a scenario that has the potent of jeopardizing the longstanding relationship which exists between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Local Government minister, July Moyo, reports from the Midlands Province indicate that a ruling Zanu PF party faction viciously lobbying for the candidature of the Zimbabwe strongman’s son, David Kudakwashe Mnangagwa has since emerged in Redcliff Constituency ahead of this year’s potentially explosive harmonized elections.
Well-placed Zanu PF insiders who spoke to this publication said serious divisions have since emerged within the ruling party after it eventually became apparent that the First Son has also been eyeing the same constituency with Minister Moyo- a perennial loyalist of his father who is understood to have played a critical role in the dramatic November 2017 events that propelled the 79-year-old to the presidency.
“It is in this regard that the political aspirations of Kuda Mnangagwa have been criticized by a camp which is loyal to Minister Moyo. A bruising contest is definitely in the offing,” said an impeccable source who spoke to this publication on condition of anonymity.
Kuda Mnangagwa
The source further quipped:
“So, Kuda has the support of the youths and the general feeling is that, the party does not really deserve to go through the same electoral embarrassment it succumbed to in the last elections”.
In 2018, Moyo was humiliatingly trounced by the virtually unknown Lloyd Dzikamai Mukapiko, then with the opposition MDC Allliance.
His electoral fall inevitably attracted widespread public interest amid revelations that Mukapiko is a former ‘grave digger’ with Redcliff Municipality.
” Not even the president was pleased with the 2018 electoral outcome in Redcliff, particularly in cognisant of the fact that the Local Government minister is one of his closest and most trusted lieutenants. The loss was a huge disappointment and an embarassment to Zanu PF. Remember, at one time legal experts raised concern over the high number of cabinet ministers who were non-MPs in the cabinet,” added the source.
Constitutionally, Mnangagwa has the privilege of appointing five cabinet ministers who are not from Parliament.
The development in Redcliff also comes in the wake of alleged rifts between the Zimbabwe president and Minister Moyo.
Poorly evidenced claims surfaced a couple of years ago, insinuating that relations between the two had deteriorated after Moyo had allegedly visited a n’anga on how to succeed Mnangagwa.
According to the claims, the n’anga advised him to buy shoes as a birthday gift for the Zimbabwe president and put juju in them.
He got them (the shoes) in TURKEY,” exiled former cabinet minister, Jonathan Moyo alleged on Twitter.
“(The) N’anga put juju on shoes and asked July to give ED as B/Day gift. Plot leaked to ED’s N’anga. July delivered shoes in Kwekwe…(and as he) delivered his birthday gift package to Mnangagwa at his Kwekwe farm, Auxillia intercepted it to see what was in it; when she saw a fancy pair of shoes, she screamed, “shangu dziya, shangu dziya”; Mnangagwa then asked July to leave immediately with the shoes, “buda, buda”!” he alleged.
Zwnews
