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Grace Mugabe humiliates Charamba publicly sides with Kasukuwere and Jonathan Moyo

First Lady Grace Mugabe today openly humiliated her husband’s official spokesman George Charamba for not reprimanding the media for attacking national commissar Saviour Kasukuwere and Higher Education Minister Jonathan Moyo day-in and day-out.

She said she wanted to tell the truth because the media was being used to malign Kasukuwere and Moyo with even allegations that Kasukuwere wanted to remove President Mugabe.

“Every day we read about Kasukuwere. If it’s not him, then it’s Professor Moyo. People have gone to the extent of coming up with non-existent corruption cases,” the First Lady said.

Summoning Charamba, who is the Permanent Secretary for Information, to come forward, Grace said: “George, I have known you for a while, way before you were appointed to your current position and before I was First Lady….So, I want to reprimand you as your mother. You are junior to ministers. I notice there are some people who get favourable coverage and others not. Why?”

Grace Mugabe’s remarks were made despite the fact that nine of the 10 Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front provinces expressed a vote of no confidence in Kasukuwere.

A special committee headed by Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda was appointed to investigate the allegations against Kasukuwere but the final decision on how to deal with him was left to the presidium which comprises Mugabe and his two deputies Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko.

In her remarks today Grace said she was Mugabe’s third assistant.

Grace, who was told to shut up last year following undiplomatic remarks at public rallies, also today said it did not matter how many years one has walked with Mugabe.

What matters is what one does behind his back.

The remarks seemed to be targetted at Mnangagwa who has been with Mugabe from the liberation struggle when he was the party president’s special assistant.

Grace’s remarks about Mnangagwa last year almost sparked a military revolt with the security chiefs demanding that Mugabe rein in his wife.

But she seems to have gotten new courage of late even demanding that Mugabe name his successor when Mugabe has repeatedly said it is the party that elects its leader.

Party insiders say it is this political immaturity that will work against her if ever she wants to rise in ZANU-PF.

(434 VIEWS)

This post was last modified on July 29, 2017 3:29 pm

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

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