By Paul Nyathi|ACIE Lumumba has scoffed at state media reports that he has been fired from his new role as Finance Ministry Communications Taskforce Chairperson, saying he is very much ‘at work’ and is reporting to his ‘bosses’.
Lumumba has said that he is still reporting to Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and President Emmerson Mnangagwa, setting an explosive stage in ZANU-PF and the government.
He scoffed at his firing in a social media conversation asking: “How can a manager at TM Supermarket fire a manager at OK Supermarket? No, I am still doing my job as assigned to me, and I am reporting to my bosses.”
Lumumba insists that he was not fired by the ministry of finance as hinted by a Ministry of Information statement on Monday saying he will be back to unmask the shadowy ‘Queen B’ whom he says is the most corrupt individual in the country.
“I am not fired and I promise to come back again, and slowly I will unmask the Queen Bee who has caused much suffering to Zimbabweans,” he told local paper Newsday.
Lumumba claimed to have unearthed a conspiracy involving shadowy figure called ‘Queen B’ who has captured the country’s central bank and the finance ministry.
He took to Twitter to muse over the events of Monday, which led to his sacking.
“Many senior gvt officials spent their day making calls & sending orders for & on behalf of Queen B, lots of money paid. The capture goes high! One Ministry(except it’s Minister) is so captured the only thing it updated the country on today was ME. Do your job, let me do mine! Friends, I have unearthed a frightening string of payments between Queen B & many appointed officials. Good thing is if the President deals with it, Zimbabwe wins,” he said.
Lumumba’s appointment last Friday split general opinion among the general public, with some saying the position was supposed to have been advertised on the open job market while others felt Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube should be allowed to headhunt those he felt would add value to his portfolio. However, the appointment might have ruffled political feathers within the ruling ZANU-PF party and the top echelons of state power, with some expressing reservations over the manner Acie Lumumba was hired.
The ruling ZANU-PF Youth League came out in support of Lumumba, urging the government to speedily investigate all issues he raised and take action against those trading in bond notes on the parallel market.
Lumumba has told a close colleague: “How can a manager at TM Supermarket fire a manager at OK Supermarket? No, I am still doing my job as assigned to me, and I am reporting to my bosses.”
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and President Mnangagwa have maintained silence on the developments. This has not helped speculation that all that is happening is a microcosm of some factional battles within the ruling party involving the President and one of his deputies.