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Felex Share, Harare Bureau
The Zanu-PF Politburo meeting which was today expected to seal the fate of the party’s national commissar Cde Saviour Kasukuwere has been postponed.

The revolutionary party’s secretary for administration Cde Ignatius Chombo confirmed the development yesterday.

“The meeting has been postponed and all Politburo members are being advised of the development,” he said, without stating reasons. “We will let you know of the new date, but for now there is nothing.”

Indications are that President Mugabe, who is the Zanu-PF First Secretary, has a busy schedule this week which includes hosting King Letsie III of Lesotho.

The Lesotho leader arrived in the country for a four-day State visit which ends tomorrow.

The much-awaited Politburo meeting was expected to centre its discussions on Cde Kasukuwere who has been rejected by all the country’s 10 provinces.

The national commissar stands accused of setting parallel structures with a view to deposing President Mugabe at an envisaged special congress. He is also accused of corruption and fanning divisions in the ruling party.

To succeed in his quest to topple President Mugabe, Cde Kasukuwere is alleged to have appointed shadow Members of Parliament to capture the grass roots.

He is alleged to have bulldozed a number of individuals – including high ranking officials – to influential positions across various party structures.

After learning about the shenanigans, party members demonstrated against Cde Kasukuwere, with his home province, Mashonaland Central, taking a leading role.

Other provincial executives then turned up the heat, signing petitions calling for the removal of the national commissar.

President Mugabe then tasked a team led by Politburo member Cde Jacob Mudenda to visit Mashonaland Central to probe the allegations being levelled against Cde Kasukuwere.

The committee is said to have completed its report.

The probe team received blow-by-blow accounts of how Cde Kasukuwere methodically “captured” parliamentary constituencies in Mashonaland Central and excluded bona fide MPs from major party decision-making processes.

Among the alleged shadow MPs were Cdes Charles Chikaura (Bindura South), the commissar’s young brother Tongai Kasukuwere (Bindura North) and a Chasasa (Mbire) and Size (Muzarabani North).

The four constituencies are represented by Cdes Remigious Matangira, Kenneth Musanhi, Douglas Karoro and Alfred Mafunga.

This week, some provincial chairpersons snubbed a meeting called by Cde Kasukuwere, saying they were waiting for the Politburo outcome.

The meeting, which was seen by many as a way by Cde Kasukuwere to taste the waters, was attended by only four provincial chairpersons.

These were Cdes Dickson Mafios (Mashonaland Central), Charles Tawengwa (Harare), Dennis Ndlovu (Bulawayo) and Bernard Makokove (Mashonaland East). Those who attended said they were not supporting the embattled national commissar, but felt party programmes should continue.

They said their actions should not be misconstrued as support for the embattled Cde Kasukuwere.

Cde Kasukuwere claimed the meeting was all about the restructuring of the party.