Chombo raps Byo Zanu-PF structures Cde Ignatius Chombo
Cde Ignatius Chombo

Cde Ignatius Chombo

Nduduzo Tshuma Political Editor
ZANU-PF secretary for administration Cde Ignatius Chombo yesterday rapped the party’s provincial structures for providing fictitious and shambolic membership records, which affect strategy formulation and projecting election results.

Cde Chombo, addressing a workshop for the secretaries of administration in the main, women and youth wings at a Bulawayo hotel, singled out Bulawayo as the major culprit for inflating the number of party structures, purporting to have 115 districts yet numbers in recent elections only tallied in five districts.

Cde Chombo said President Robert Mugabe at the Zanu-PF 6th National People’s Congress lamented the state of the party’s administration manned by ousted secretary for administration, Didymus Mutasa.

Mutasa, part of a cabal led by axed vice president Joice Mujuru, accused of plotting to topple President Mugabe in the run up to last year’s congress, was fired from the party and the government together with several officials that include former secretary of information and publicity Rugare Gumbo.

Cde Chombo said the security of party information was equally compromised and led to mishandling of party information for ulterior motives, which were bent on advancing a sinister agenda of select malcontents within the party.

He said the party’s human resources management was also a cause for concern where provinces and political office bearers often confused the roles of office bearers and those of party civil service.

Cde Chombo said the party was also characterised by a willy-nilly approach in hiring and dismissing personnel with disregard to disciplinary procedures resulting in the party losing the cases at the courts.

“In the recent past, the party has witnessed gross inadequacy and outright incompetence in the manner it was run. The party records of membership were fictitious and in shambles to render them useless for the purposes of research or projection of election results, strategy development planning,” said Cde Chombo.

“So gross was the manipulation of membership numbers that in Bulawayo province for example, the election result for the whole province totalled approximately five districts against a purported 115 party districts.”

Cde Chombo said it has become the culture that provinces inflate the number of party districts to have superiority over others with regards to allocation of leadership positions and perceived party strength.

“On the shambolic state of our party’s membership records, blame is often cast on the commissariat, however, secretaries of administration are the ultimate custodians of party records and have to protect the integrity of the information available to the party for they are indeed the common denominator of all party activities,” he said.

Cde Chombo said the party’s administration, manned by Mutasa, had deteriorated to alarming levels.

“The party was characterised by haphazard manner of recruitment, selection and promotion of party personnel, favouritism in the use and allocation of party resources like vehicles, rampant abuse of office and corrupt actions done with impunity, lack of accountability of party assets and resources, coupled with gross negligence to the extent of failing to mobilise critical resources for key party events like conferences,” he said.

Cde Chombo said the mentioned issues threatened to incapacitate and almost collapse the party’s administrative machinery hence the holding of yesterday’s workshop to share ideas, examine systems and provide guidance on how the department can work in a synchronised manner.

“There’re always advantages assured from a culture of doing things right all the time and I would appreciate if we were all, with one accord, to adopt such ethics. It’s paramount that we work within the parameters of best practice as we play our part in servicing the party and the broader membership,” said Cde Chombo.

“A well oiled party administration will help us to institute efficient early warning systems, correctly project election patterns and results, in addition to effective campaign and mobilisation strategies.”

Cde Chombo said the administration department plays a crucial role in the implementation of the government’s economic blue print, Zim-Asset as it has the opportunity to direct the course of the party, “through the agenda we set for meetings, which inform the discourse within the party and ensures the requisite monitoring and evaluation of Zim-Asset by making the various government ministries and departments account to the party.”

This, Cde Chombo said, will in turn propel the much desired turn around and ultimately deliver improved livelihoods to the entire nation.

“It’s my considered view that in all our undertakings as administration, we should operate in sync with His Excellency the President and First Secretary, Cde RG Mugabe’s admonitions during the 6th National People’s Congress, when he emphatically bemoaned the shambles that was then in the party,” he said.

“It’s therefore our duty as a unit to set a correct record. Sound and efficient party administration should be our everyday motto.”

Cde Chombo said it was important for the secretaries of administration to understand that their mandate was not determined by the whims of individuals but born out of the supreme law of the party’s constitution.

He said the party will soon be distributing computers to all provinces and some district offices to aid officers in the execution of their duties.

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