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Dr Grace Mugabe

Tendai Mugabe, Harare Bureau
Zanu-PF Women’s League continues to receive unyielding support following clarification by its secretary Dr Grace Mugabe on the proposal to have the party’s constitution amended to include a woman in the Presidium.

The proposal was read by some to imply that one of the current Vice Presidents should be recalled to make way for a woman.

The latest support came from the party’s Youth League, the Zimbabwe Liberation War Collaborators’ Association (Ziliwaco) and, the Zimbabwe Ex-Political Prisoners, Detainees and Restrictees Association.

Zanu-PF Youth League commissar Cde Innocent Hamandishe yesterday said the First Lady was spot on, and as the party’s youth wing, they respected decisions made by President Mugabe who is the sole centre of power in the party.

“Our view as the youths is clear. The party has one centre of power — VaMugabe,” he said.

“It does not require conference or congress for the President to make decisions that he thinks will keep the party stable and strong. Whatever the President says, becomes our direction.

“The issue of appointment of people in certain positions is the sole prerogative of the President, and that is what we mean by one centre of power.

There is no one in the party who should decide that so and so should occupy this or that position. It is clear that the power to appoint or disappoint rests with the President. We gave him that power at our last congress.

“He can do everything that he thinks is right and as the Youth League, we have always been clear on that.”

He continued: “That is why we always say, we stand by one centre of power who happens to be the President. This is the reason why you see that we mobilise big events for the President. We mobilised the One Million Men March, and we are also the organisers of the 21st February Movement celebrations.”

Addressing the Women’s League national assembly meeting on Friday, Dr Mugabe made it clear that the two VPs — Cdes Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko who were appointed by President Mugabe as his deputies at the 2014 Congress — enjoyed the full support of the Women’s League.

“Your Excellency, just to put the record straight, our resolution was misunderstood and misinterpreted. The resolution was never meant to dispense with any one. On this note, I wish to assure obaba Vice Presidents and Second Secretary Cdes Mnangagwa and Mphoko that you have our full support,” said Dr Mugabe during last week’s meeting.

Ziliwaco chairperson Cde Pupurai Togarepi said they welcomed the clarification by Dr Mugabe saying it would make the party stronger.

“We are very excited that there was this clarification and as Ziliwaco, we support the President and we support the position which was clarified by the First Lady,” he said.

“As Ziliwaco, we say, Dr Mugabe helped deal with former ruling party leaders who were removed and later formed [Zimbabwe] People First and she solved the problem that was confronting the party. Today, there are also some malcontents who were now creating stories to divide the leadership and the First Lady has once again come out to clarify that issue. In our view, our party is going to be stronger and united, and we won’t be stoppable.

“We support the President; we support his appointees and, we support his decision to emphasise the issue of unity. Nothing can save Zanu-PF except being united. We realise that among the rank and file of Zanu-PF, there were other elements who were trying to divide the party and unfairly using the name of the First Lady and the name of the President to advance their personal agendas.”

ZEPPDRA chairman Cde Victor Panganai Kuretu also weighed in saying the clarification pointed to where the party and the country was going.

“We welcome what the First Lady said, and I think this points where the country and Zanu-PF are going,” he said.

“Conferences are not elective and, we welcome everything that came out of the meeting of the Women’s League. It has cleared a lot of confusion that had gone into the minds of some people.”