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Mashudu Netsianda, Senior Reporter

THE Zanu-PF Herbert Chitepo Ideological College is targeting to train at least 60 000 members in Bulawayo within the next four years, a senior official has said.

Speaking during a meeting at the ruling party’s Bulawayo provincial headquarters, Davies Hall on Sunday, Zanu-PF Politburo member and the principal of the Herbert Chitepo Ideological College, Cde Munyaradzi Machacha, said they have so far trained 118 trainers in the province.

“We are looking at training at least 60 000 party members at our school of ideology and so far, we have trained 118 trainers. 

“This training is meant to bring back Zanu-PF ideologies to the cadres so that we bring back our political culture, and it will also encourage cohesion in the party,” he said. 

Cde Machacha emphasised the need to take the party’s ideology to the lowest ranks within the party to foster discipline and correctly orient its cadres. 

“The training is meant to assist and mould party cadres into disciplined ones in line with the Zanu-PF ideology,” he said.

The Herbert Chitepo School of Ideology was established after the revolutionary party recognised the need to impart foundational philosophies regarding the country’s history.

The school was established in honour of the late nationalist and Zanu chairman, Cde Herbert Chitepo, who was killed by  a car bomb on March 18, 1975 in Lusaka, Zambia.

He died at 51.

As a lawyer and distinguished politician, Cde Chitepo is hailed for his ideology upon which the ruling party laid its foundation.

Cde Machacha, who is also part of the Zanu-PF team spearheading the restructuring exercise in Bulawayo, said the party has increased the number of districts in the province from 49 to 59.

“We came to Bulawayo and resuscitated our teams to activate the process of restructuring the party. The party leadership in Bulawayo is working very hard as a team and despite the differences among individuals, they did not allow that to affect the work,” he said. In March, Zanu-PF First Secretary and President Cde Mnangagwa dissolved all the party’s structures in Bulawayo and Harare.

The party leadership said the dissolution of the party’s structures in Bulawayo and Harare would address problems that have resulted in the party perennially losing elections in the two metropolitan provinces. 

Vice President Constantino Chiwenga is superintending over the party’s affairs in Harare while Vice President Kembo Mohadi is overseeing structures in Bulawayo. – @mashnets