By Christopher Ndhlovu | A new political and leadership discourse is developing in Zimbabwe with the country’s young generation seemingly determined to influence change.

Hours after Themba Mliswa, who leads a youth organisation YARD was heard suggesting names of those he thought will take the country forward after Mugabe and ZANU PF, one of the people he mentioned has been spotted at a Bulawayo Hotel holding a meeting with a fledgling youth component in Dumiso Dabengwa led ZAPU.

The meeting between the ZAPU youths and Dr Nkosana Moyo, a well respected academic and former Minister in Zimbabwe is also viewed confirmation of a developing succession issue within the party and gives flesh to suspicions that the group, christened Milleniads are head hunting for a successor in the event the current leader retires as he hinted at last year’s Congress.

It has been reported that the youths in question are rabidly opposed to the current Secretary General succeeding Dabengwa. Reports say the youths are in favour of relatively new blood within in its leadership ranks, which puts Dr Strike Mkandla at a disadvantage with the group. It is further reported that there is clear division between the youths and the older generation within ZAPU as to the succession issue.

The youths, as reportedly, also accuse the Secretary General of mistiming his agenda of succeeding Dabengwa as it is reported he now intends to push him out before end of his term or retirement.

This is while the “Milleniads” are pushing for Dabengwa to finish his term as per constitution with a successor coming in at the next Congress in 2020.

It is however not known what the discussion was between the ZAPU youths and Dr Moyo, but it shows the inevitable paradigm shift in terms of leadership and quality of leaders the youths of the country expect as we slowly pace to the 2018 elections.

However, speculation is rife that the group are seriously head hunting for a possible successor at departure of their current leader, with reports from within the party say they are also considering their equally youthful counterparts within ZAPU.

It remains to be seen if the trend set by ZAPU’s “Milleniads” will be adopted by their colleagues in other parties and parts of the country. The meeting confirms

that Dr Nkosana Moyo’s popularity is growing especially with the younger generation who view him as one of the very few who could stand up to the

dictatorship in the country. He remains largely respected as both a technocrat and a possible messiah for the country which is deeply sinking in socio-political and economic problems at the hands of the ZANU PF regime.

Efforts to get comment from the “Milleniads” were fruitless as the suspected leader of the group, Iphithule Maphosa’s phone was not reachable at the time of going to press.