By Own Correspondent- A former ZANU PF politburo member and cabinet minister Rugare Gumbo said that he is happy sitting on the sidelines of the political arena adding that he does not wish to rejoin the former liberation party.

Gumbo was sacked from Zanu Pf alongside Joice Mujuru, Didymus Mutasa, Ray Kaukonde among others in 2014.

They were shown the exit door after their Gamatox faction was accused of plotting to unseat the then President, Robert Mugabe.

In an interview with the Daily News over the weekend, Gumbo said:

“I am not concerned at all about re-joining Zanu PF. Some have gone back but mumwe nemumwe anoita zvaanoda (we all have the right to do as we please).

I am enjoying myself in the terraces, and I am quite comfortable. I am off politics and I will not apply to re-join a party that I suffered for since I was a kid.”

Gumbo reiterated the importance of independence to Zimbabweans, saying that the country lost more than 50 000 people during the liberation struggle. He said:

“Independence is very important for the people of Zimbabwe. It is now a critical moment for reflection of what we achieved and missed.

We lost a number of people during the liberation struggle. The estimates put the number at 50 000, but it could be higher than that.

There are a number of things that we need to ask ourselves as we celebrate Independence Day. The economy is in a quagmire, to begin with.

This means that we are not enjoying the fruits of independence, maybe because of commissions or omissions on our part as nationalists.

But there is no doubt that we have to take responsibility for our generational failure. We failed to mentor young people to take over.

We, nationalists, don’t accept that we are old and should pass on the leadership baton. Zimbabweans deserve better than what we are getting now.”-DailyNews