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Scramble for Mugabe’s ear

Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front senior members are falling all over each other to get President Robert Mugabe’s ear as the party prepares for its elective congress in December. Party spokesman Rugare Gumbo said Mugabe had expressed dismay at the number of people that are coming to him to seek his personal endorsement. ZANU-PF is holding its congress in December this year and most people had hoped that Mugabe would step down to give way to a new leader in preparation for the 2018 elections. The next party congress is in 2019. Already some people have endorsed Mugabe, who is 90, to stand. The Women’s League also wants his wife, Grace to stand as leader of the league.  The move is said to have upset the Joice Mujuru faction as Mujuru, backed by secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa, is trying to ensure that people follow party protocol and the constitution because she is next in line should Mugabe die in office. The party has no second vice-President since the death of John Nkomo in January last year.

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This post was last modified on August 10, 2014 8:58 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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