Mugabe rubbishes Mujuru’s new party

President Robert Mugabe yesterday dismissed former Vice-President Joice Mujuru’s party, Zimbabwe People First, as a political non-entity which will disintegrate just like the other opposition parties such as the Movement for Democratic Change had.

Speaking at his 92^nd birthday party at the Great Zimbabwe, Mugabe said his Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front would remain very strong, despite the infighting which has rocked the party since Mujuru was kicked out at the 2014 congress.

“Zvimwe zviparty zvakagurunuka. Hauchambokwanisa kuisa zvigamba. Mabhaudhi anotyoka. Kana kudii hapana. Kana vakada kuti ndisu vanaani aaah hapana. Vanosvotoka vachibva kuMDC-T hamheno vanozviti MDC-T T, MDC-T. Hamheno kuti vanozviti MDC chii. Avo vakabvawo kwedu vakamboedza kuti vangatore zita redu vakari nzvengesa. Vakati tinoda kuti tizonzi People First. Aaaaah uchanzwa People First, People Second, People Third, People Fourth. Regera. Zvinoramba zvakaita mutorododo zvakadarowo mugwagwa. Zanu-PF will remain Zanu-PF, very strong, no change,” he said.

Mujuru’s party has been touted as one of the biggest threats to Mugabe’s ZANU-PF but it has so far failed to rope in the main opposition MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

Tsvangirai has been under tremendous pressure to join forces with Mujuru but as a junior partner something that is not palatable to his supporters because they believe he can beat Mugabe on his own as he did in 2008 but failed to form his own government.

Mujuru was at one time said to have about 100 ZANU-PF Members of Parliament behind her but her strength which has been played up by the privately-owned media has never been tested.

She said that she had now recruited enough supporters across the country to form her own party, but her link to ZANU-PF, despite her apologising for her deeds, will remain a big dent on her political career and can be used by ZANU-PF when it comes to the crunch.

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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.