The untold story of three youths who changed the course of Zimbabwe’s history

Mpariwa confirmed that she was involved in the initial talks but gave way to a senior member of the party. Like Misihairabwi-Mushonga, however, she felt bitter that her role had been totally ignored in favour of the men who took over.

Mpariwa, like Misihairabwi, is a feminist. She was one of the first seven female legislators from the MDC in 2000 together with Thokozani Khupe, Getrude Stevenson, Hilda Mafudze, Evelyn Masaiti and Nomalanga Mzilikazi Khumalo, and has been in Parliament since.

A former trade unionist with the Commercial Workers Union, Mpariwa was appointed Minister of Labour and Social Welfare in the inclusive government. She is currently a proportional representation Member of Parliament for Harare.

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Kasukuwere had a slightly different version of how the talks started. He confirmed that he had known Priscilla way back when her father was the headmaster at Mutondwe Primary School in Mt Darwin.

“My aunt (mainini) Esther was married to a teacher at the school, Mr Mazhambe. She was Priscilla’s godmother so Priscilla was more like my sister. Mainini Esther looked after us when we moved to Harare so when she died in 2003, I asked my ‘sisiter’ Tendai (Esther’s daughter) whether she had informed her ‘sister’ Priscilla, about their mother’s death.”

Kasukuwere said Tendai said she had. When Priscilla arrived with Mpariwa, they looked so shabby that he asked what had happened to them. He said Priscilla told her that they had been in hiding for three days because security agents were looking for them.

“I told her that I was going to talk to Goche because, one, she was my sister, and two, because this was not the way politics was supposed to be handled.”

Kasukuwere said Goche was taken aback when he briefed him.

“He said this was not how things were supposed to happen. So I asked him to meet Priscilla and Mpariwa at my Comoil offices. Sometimes they would meet at night and they started discussing how they could find each other and how they could build a new relationship.

“Goche went and briefed Mugabe and Mugabe said go ahead with the talks. Priscilla brought in Paul Themba Nyathi but there was tension between Nyathi and Goche so to break the ice I brought them a bottle of Blue Label Whisky.

“Goche then brought in Elliot Manyika but I said we can’t all be from Mashonaland Central so Mugabe brought in Chinamasa. Manyika and I were excused .

“So indeed, we initiated he talks. Priscilla and I sometimes call it the Esther Understanding because it was Esther’s death that brought us together again.

“Priscilla was very central to the resolution of the political crisis. She is one person with her heart in the right place and is very loyal to her friends. She is very genuine. What you see is what you get,” Kasukuwere said.

Kasukuwere too was appointed to the powerful post of Minister of Youth, Empowerment and Indigenisation in the inclusive government. He was later promoted to Minister of Local Government and became the ruling party’s political commissar. He became so powerful that, most people, believed that he was eyeing the post of president of the country and was the power behind the First Lady Grace Mugabe. Observers said, however, Kasukuwere was using her to get rid of Emmerson Mnangagwa who was also heir to the throne but was going to ditch her once they had sidelined Mnangagwa.

It almost worked but the military intervened in November 2017 saying they could not stand by and watch the country being taken over by counter-revolutionaries. Kasukuwere fled into exile but came back to the country in May 2018 after being promised that he would not be harassed. He was, however, later charged with four counts of criminal abuse of office and left the country in early January 2019 on the pretext that he wanted to seek medical attention in South Africa. He has not returned since but says he wants to challenge Mnangagwa in the 2023 elections.

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