Shyleen Mtandwa | ZimEye.com can confirm that the Joice Mujuru led faction of the beleaguered Zimbabwe People First party, will be opting out of using the current name following a feud with the Rugare Gumbo and Didymus Mutasa led faction.
This is a move that can be construed as Mujuru conceding defeat and tantamount to her forming a new party altogether.
Reliable sources within the party indicated to ZimEye.com that the party will not be subjected to what they called unnecessary legal actions trying to fight over the party name with the Gumbo – Mutasa faction who have already fired warning shots of wanting to retain the name.
According to the sources the party has set up a separate committee to look into the issue of a new name for the party. The sources claim that the party is currently in the process of withdrawing membership cards issued to members under the Zimbabwe People First brand.
Social media postings by party members suggest that the party members are for the change of name with several names already being suggested on social media.
Gumbo and Mutasa wrote to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission ZEC advising the commission that Mujuru will no longer be allowed to use the Zimbabwe People First name for her faction. The two claim that the name belongs to them as founding fathers of the party.
A comment could not immediately be sourced from the Mujuru faction spokesperson Jealous Mawarire.
Tsvangirai and Mujuru should just quit their parties and form another new one. A new name is a very good move.
The name is already dirty and it failed at its first test – the Bikita by-election. So let those old guys keep it. Some will say its conceding defeat – but i say you have to actually lose something of VALUE for it to be a defeat. What she must do now though is really focus on youth and women. All these parties are just giving the youth lip-service. Its time somebody took them seriously and put them at NUMBER 1 in the party – and who better than a party led by a woman – unless Evan Mawarire decides to launch a true youth party himself.
Mujuru must just join up with Tsvangirayi and fight this dictatorship
I think it was a blessing that the infighting of ZimPF came into light now than latter. If it has shown its ugly face later, by later I mean late 2017 and towards the election it would have been a disaster for Zimbabwe opposition parties. The great idea of coming together is an idea whose time has come and all sundry are agreed that for change to come opposition politics in Zimbabwe should come together.
as I see it, while there is some truth in that splits bring weakness within an establishment, I tend to predict the opposite in ZmPF considering that, the major contention was that the two groups’ ideologies differed. One is said to have advocated for a merger with other opposition parties, while the other did not support the move. For takers the old guards’s refusal to support a united front is suspicious as many of us would assume that their refusal is influenced by their much anticipated link to ZanuPF. This arms the Mujuru lead function with the sympathy from the people of Zimbabwe who since ZimPF was formed were not sure whether Mujuru was genuine and a reliable leader who people could trust.
By confronting the old guard by the hones, she has demonstrated courage and decision ability to win support from those who were suspicious of her motive. The fact that 9 out of 10 provinces, the women’s league, the war vets are behind her gives her extra ammunition to return most of the support from their party and also win backing from opposition politics.More so, her close association with Tswangirai vibrate melody to the desperate Zimbabweans who anticipate change in 2018. So let all the peace loving suffering people of Zimbabwe put their support behind her.
The change of name is also a noble idea and if the old guard had thought they would win royalty through the courts,, they have been caught napping again and indication how far behind they are in terms of tactics, having been surprised by the preemptive strike from Mujuru. People were always suspicious of the name ZimPF, as it rhymed with ZanuPF. We did not know why this name was tactically returned the PF . So a total change of name will give the Mujuru lead outfit a break from ZimPF and ZanuPF (sounds familiar to me).
The name Mujuru alone is a brand and over the years has acquired respect and ruyality in politics. You can not compare it with Mutasa and Gumbo. The name Mutasa rhymes with the security apparatus of ZanuPF to many people while Mujuru’s name is more to the liberation struggles and Vice Presidency. Luckily Joyce did not make a fool of herself by making a lot of controversial noise while in government like the likes of Mutasa. Mutasa is known for his no nuances comments that had no human regard while he was security minister and these actions will cost him the support which he needs.
I BLAME MUGABE FOR THIS HE IS THE ONE WHO INSITIGATE A CULTURE THAT THERE IS NO RETIREMENT IN ZIMBABWE POLITICS…HONESTLY WHAT EXACTLY DO THESE MDHARAZ AND MBUYAS WANT KO KUNOZORORA KUNEIKO
Where is mutasa and gumbo going to get the support?surely proves they are instruments for zanupf.pathetic zim politics.people are looking for a grand coalition and they are breaking up a party into fragments.mugabe chirikusekerera so.CIO mentality of destruction dzaana Dydmus madziona.