By- Desperate Zanu PF officials for the Midlands Province are directing traditional leaders to force villagers to attend their meetings mainly because of poor attendance caused by disputed primary elections held in March.
Reports indicate that ZANU PF members have been snubbing meetings protesting the manner the party held its primary elections.
Thousands of bonafide members failed to vote after their names went missing from the voters’ roll giving an unfair advantage to some candidates.
ZANU PF secretary for security Lovemore Matuke will be in Gweru on Tuesday for a crisis meeting to deal with the simmering tensions.
NewsDay reported that on Friday, only 17 people attended a meeting organised by Gokwe-Nembudziya parliamentary candidate Flora Buka that was addressed by provincial political commissar Maud Ngwenya.
The meeting was held at the Nembudziya Rural District Council offices (Gokwe North) to mobilise support for the forthcoming elections.
According to a WhatsApp message that was circulated on Sunday, Buka has now called another meeting this Monday at the same venue.
She ordered chiefs and to order village heads to bring their subjects to meeting. Reads the message:
Mamuka sei nhasi, muudze masabhuku vauye nevanhu vavo vose kumusangano mangwana pa council pari kuuya national PC (good morning, can you tell the kraal heads to bring all their subjects for a meeting at the council offices which will be attended by the national PC).
Buka beat sitting MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena twice in an election the latter claimed was rigged.
ZANU PF ordered that re-runs be conducted in only five constituencies yet the party had received complaints of voter malpractices from over 150 of the 210 constituencies across the country.
ZANU PF primaries were run by Forever Associate Zimbabwe (FAZ), controlled by the Central Intelligence Organisation and Heritage, which is linked to the army, according to a report by The Standard.
A ZANU PF internal document titled Talking Points dated 27 March 2023 revealed that FAZ, led by CIO deputy director-general Walter Tapfumaneyi had the major say in the elections.