Own Correspondent|FEARS that the ruling ZANU-PF party continues abusing state institutions for party activities were confirmed when the party’s Secretary for the Women’s League Mabel said Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) officers were on the lookout for party members who continued entertaining members of the decapitated G40 faction.
Speaking during the Women’s league National Assembly meeting ahead of the party’s National Conference scheduled for Esigodini next week, Chinomona said the party through the CIO, was aware of secret meetings being held in hotels with expelled Zanu PF members.
“We understand that there are some people who are holding meeting in hotels with some G40 members. We all know what G40 had done to the party but you are busy conniving with them. That is uncalled for.
“We have the CIO that was set up by President Mnangagwa and they are among us. If they catch you on the wrong side, you are in trouble, be warned,” threatened Chinomona.
She warned that all party members who are engaged in unclear moves will face the consequences.
Chinomona’s threats go against President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s assurance in May this year that his administration will never allow state institutions to be abused for party activities. This followed media reports that police officers had been involved in running ZANU-PF primary elections.
The President said on 2 May in a statement published by Regis Chikowore, who was acting Secretary for Information and Publicity: “Let it be known that any conflation of Party and State institutions as might have happened in the past will not be allowed under the new dispensation.
“The President in his capacity as both leader of a political party and Head of Government wishes to make it abundantly clear to all and sundry that it is neither the policy of Zanu PF nor the direction of Government, through him, to deploy the police force or any arm of the security establishment in helping with any party function, list of all as presiding or returning officers in Party primary which must be roundly condemned and stopped forthwith.
“Any officials of the Party or officers of the security establishment caught abusing arms and personnel of security as alleged in the story will be dealt with severely.”
President Mnangagwa himself has previously boasted that the army, police, and virtually all government departments were conflated with the ruling party.
Speaking in Norton ahead of the October 2016 Norton by-election, Mnangagwa who then was Vice President bragged that Zanu PF was the party in charge, with control over mines and everything, and he urged people to join the party on that basis.
“…hakuna mumwe musangano uchamuka muno muZimbabawe kupfuura Zanu PF… (no party will emerge bigger than Zanu PF). We are the people, we are the government, we are the army, we are the air force, we are the police, we are everything you can think of,” he told supporters at a rally as he campaigned for Zanu PF’s Ronald Chindedza, who was facing independent candidate Temba Mliswa and National Constitutional Assembly’s David Choga.
“We determine who can do mining in Zimbabwe, we determine who can build a railway in Zimbabwe, we can determine who can build a road in Zimbabwe and no other party can do so,” Mnangagwa said.