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Leonard Ncube in Hwange
ZANU-PF has completed the process of investigating concerns raised by some members in connection with District Co-ordinating Committee (DCC) elections conducted in November last year.

A team led by National Political Commissar Cde Victor Matemadanda was dispatched to Manicaland, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South as well as Masvingo provinces to investigate the concerns.

The ruling party reintroduced the DCCs after disbanding them in 2012 when it was felt they had been hijacked by elements that wanted to manipulate the party structures to foment factionalism and disharmony.

Elections were held countrywide in all party administrative districts but there were complaints of alleged irregularities in some districts.

Some losing candidates and concerned party members raised complaints with the National Election Directorate challenging poll results and the voting process.

In Hwange, losing candidate Cde Reeds Dube told the party that there were some irregularities in the election after he lost to Cde Matthew Muleya. Two other candidates Cdes Jonathan Mathe and John Dix Ncube contested in the four-man race for the Hwange DCC chairmanship.

Politburo members Cdes Lovemore Matuke, who is Secretary for Security in the party; Munyaradzi Machacha, who is Principal of Chitepo School of Ideology; and David Parirenyatwa, who presided over the Matabeleland North DCC elections last year, presided over the Hwange investigation session at Lwendulu Hall yesterday.

Party members who cast their votes in the election were the ones who were allowed to present their concerns to the team while candidates, both losing and winning, provincial members and National Central Assembly members were asked to leave the hall to allow members to freely air their concerns and also to ensure adherence to lockdown regulations where only less than 30 people were allowed in a gathering.

Two complaints desks were set and members were invited in quartet to present their issues before the panels.

Opening the proceedings, Cde Machacha said: “We are here following a Politburo meeting last week after receiving a petition. So, we have been sent here to gather people’s views and the outcome of this session will guide the way forward.”

In an interview afterwards, Cde Matuke said the Politburo will make a decision after receiving a report from the team.

“We are here under the guidance of the National Political Commissar (Cde Matemadanda) and the purpose of us being here is to gather information whether the elections were free and fair. We will present it to the Politburo which will in turn make a decision. We have been able to interview all the district chairpersons and we will then sit down to compile all the information so that we present it before the Politburo,” said Cde Matuke.

He said the investigating team’s mandate was only to attend to the complaints while the final decision will be made by the Politburo.

“Out of more than 57 districts we had complaints from not more than five districts and so we have attended to them. This is the last district but we have no decision whether there will be a rerun or not, so far, we are happy because we gathered enough information which we wanted. We (party) are going to make use of the information to make a decision,” said Cde Matuke. — @ncubeleon