HARARE
–
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa
and
his
lieutenants
accused
his
deputy,
Vice
President
Constantino
Chiwenga,
of
attempting
to
“undermine
a
constitutionally
elected
government”
and
“incite
despondency”
after
Chiwenga
tabled
a
searing
17-page
dossier
before
the
Zanu
PF
politburo
on
September
17
accusing
the
president
of
presiding
over
“corruption,
capture
and
betrayal”
of
the
ideals
of
the
2017
coup.
Mnangagwa’s
rebuttal
—
contained
in
a
document
authored
by
Zanu
PF’s
legal
secretary
and
Justice
Minister
Ziyambi
Ziyambi,
and
presented
to
the
Politburo
on
Tuesday
—
marks
the
most
direct
confrontation
yet
between
the
two
men
who
jointly
led
the
2017
military
intervention
that
ousted
Robert
Mugabe.
Ziyambi,
tabling
Mnangagwa’s
response,
described
Chiwenga’s
document
as
“fundamentally
flawed,
treasonous,
and
lacking
appreciation
of
party
procedures
and
the
national
constitution.”
“At
its
core,
the
document
advocates
for
the
unlawful
removal
of
a
constitutionally
elected
President,”
Ziyambi
wrote.
“Any
attempt
to
destabilise
or
subvert
a
constitutionally
elected
government
is
treasonous.”
Chiwenga’s
document,
which
he
presented
to
Mnangagwa
on
September
17,
opened
by
invoking
the
November
2017
coup
that
brought
the
pair
to
power.
“Comrade
President,
we
undertook
Operation
Restore
Legacy
with
a
sacred
mandate:
to
reclaim
our
nation
from
the
jaws
of
corruption
and
to
restore
the
dignity,
prosperity,
and
sovereignty
of
Zimbabwe,”
Chiwenga
wrote.
But
Mnangagwa’s
camp
shot
back
that
the
vice
president
was
trying
to
monopolise
credit
for
the
coup.
“It
is
denied
that
only
a
few
individuals,
particularly
the
writers
of
this
document,
sacrificed
their
lives
for
Operation
Restore
Legacy,”
Ziyambi
responded.
“Zimbabweans
from
all
walks
of
life
rose
and
participated.
Let
us
acknowledge
the
collective
effort
and
desist
from
claiming
heroism
for
work
done
by
many.”
Ziyambi
even
revealed
that
businessman
Kudakwashe
Tagwirei,
one
of
several
tycoons
Chiwenga
accused
of
“state
capture,”
had
bankrolled
the
2017
operation.
“For
the
record,
Mr.
Kudakwashe
Tagwirei
put
in
a
total
of
five
million
litres
of
fuel,
food
and
other
provisions
for
soldiers
as
requested
by
the
then
CDF,
General
Chiwenga.
Furthermore,
he
put
in
one
million
litres
of
fuel
and
US$1.6
million
to
the
party,”
the
response
says.
In
his
dossier,
Chiwenga
accused
Mnangagwa’s
allies
—
notably
Tagwirei,
Wicknell
Chivhayo,
Scott
Sakupwanya,
and
Delish
Nguwaya
—
of
“stealing
more
than
US$3.2
billion
of
government
funds,”
“corrupting
party
structures,”
and
“turning
the
president’s
private
office
into
a
place
where
key
government
decisions
are
made.”
“These
criminals
have
brazenly
looted
our
state
coffers
with
impunity,”
Chiwenga
charged.
“We
cannot
fold
our
hands
and
watch
these
criminals
like
Kudakwashe
Tagwirei,
Wicknell
Chivayo,
Scott
Sakupwanya,
and
Delish
Nguwaya
corrupt
and
bribe
our
structures
and
destroy
our
party.”
He
demanded
their
immediate
arrest,
adding
that
“the
time
for
silence
and
inaction
is
over.”
But
Mnangagwa’s
written
response
dismissed
the
allegations
as
“false,
malicious
and
reckless.”
“Zimbabwe
is
a
constitutional
democracy
with
well-established
institutions
to
deal
with
such
matters,”
Ziyambi
wrote.
“Individuals
have
no
legal
mandate
to
investigate
their
perceived
competitors
to
satisfy
their
personal
ego.
These
utterances
are
defamatory.”
Ziyambi
said
the
transactions
cited
by
Chiwenga,
including
the
Kuvimba
Mining
House
share
sale
and
the
Pomona
waste
management
deal,
had
full
cabinet
approval.
“Zanu
PF
does
not
own
any
shares
in
Sakunda
Holdings,”
Ziyambi
stated.
“All
contracts
were
concluded
in
compliance
with
the
Public
Procurement
and
Disposal
of
Public
Assets
Act.
At
no
time
did
ZEC
[Zimbabwe
Electoral
Commission]
enter
into
a
contract
with
Chivayo
or
any
company
associated
with
him.”
Chiwenga
had
also
accused
Mnangagwa
of
plotting
to
extend
his
rule
beyond
2028
through
what
he
called
the
“so-called
2030
Agenda,”
warning
that
“we
are
repeating
the
ills
that
led
us
to
November
2017.”
Ziyambi
hit
back,
saying
the
2030
Agenda
was
in
fact
Resolution
Number
One
of
the
2024
Zanu
PF
National
People’s
Conference
and
therefore
fully
constitutional.
“The
president
is
a
constitutionalist
who
has
not
deviated
from
the
constitution
at
any
time,”
he
stated.
“There
were
thirty-one
resolutions
from
the
last
conference,
and
Agenda
2030
was
resolution
number
one.
There
is
therefore
nothing
unconstitutional
about
it.”
He
added
pointedly:
“Given
the
underlying
circumstances,
any
attempt
to
destabilise
the
government
on
the
basis
of
such
falsehoods
is
tantamount
to
treason.”
The
response
repeatedly
accused
Chiwenga
of
being
“in
denial”
and
“bitter.”
“The
author
has
clearly
demonstrated
his
bitterness,”
Ziyambi
said
at
one
point.
“To
question
what
happens
to
the
president
in
his
private
space
is
immature
and
intrusive.
A
good
leader
is
a
good
follower.
The
author
has
shown
he
is
not
a
good
follower
and
therefore
cannot
be
a
leader.”
He
also
accused
the
vice
president
of
hypocrisy,
alleging
that
members
of
the
presidium,
“including
the
author
himself,”
host
political
meetings
at
their
private
farms.
“No-one
has
ever
questioned
these
gatherings
nor
eavesdropped
on
what
takes
place
at
these
private
places,”
the
response
notes
acidly.
Chiwenga
had
further
claimed
that
exiled
former
minister
Jonathan
Moyo
was
behind
a
“treasonous
project”
dubbed
the
Breaking
Barriers
Initiative
(BBI),
allegedly
aimed
at
suspending
elections
until
2035.
Ziyambi’s
reply
dismissed
that
as
“strange
and
regrettable.”
“It
is
surprising
how
the
writer
got
hold
of
the
BBI
document
if
it
was
meant
for
parliament,”
he
wrote.
“There
is
nothing
treasonous
about
improving
a
political
system.
The
BBI,
which
is
being
referred
to,
is
actually
promoting
nation
building
and
cohesion.”
He
claimed
the
initiative
was
an
opposition
document
brought
to
him
by
CCC
interim
leader
Sengezo
Tshabangu
“in
the
company
of
a
General
Khumalo
from
the
Vice
President’s
Office.”
Ziyambi
likened
Chiwenga’s
memorandum
to
“narratives
perpetuated
by
hostile
media
and
rebels
like
Blessed
Geza.”
“The
document
bears
a
striking
resemblance
to
the
narratives
perpetuated
by
Geza,
Western
media
and
all
our
detractors
bent
on
undermining
our
sovereignty,”
Ziyambi
went
on.
He
recommended
that
politburo
and
central
committee
members
undergo
“a
reorientation
course
at
the
Chitepo
School
of
Ideology
on
the
supremacy
of
the
party
and
the
tenets
of
democracy.”
The
response
ended
with
a
warning:
“Any
attempt
to
stage
a
coup,
whether
through
treacherous
acts,
misrepresentation
of
facts,
incitement
of
violence,
or
willful
blindness
to
positive
development,
is
a
grave
offence
that
undermines
stability
and
unity
of
our
nation
and
should
be
liable
to
immediate
censure.”
Zanu
PF
insiders
said
Chiwenga
also
came
under
attack
from
Zanu
PF
national
chair
Oppah
Muchinguri,
who
told
him
they
all
went
to
war,
and
their
paths
split
at
independence
when
he
became
a
soldier
and
they
went
into
government.
Muchinguri,
ZimLive
heard,
told
Chiwenga
–
a
retired
commander
of
the
Zimbabwe
Defence
Forces
–
that
there
was
“nothing
special
about
coming
from
the
barracks.”
Zanu
PF
legal
secretary
Patrick
Chinamasa
reportedly
told
the
vice
president
that
his
criticism
of
the
land
tenure
implementation
committee,
led
by
Tagwirei,
ignored
the
fact
that
“the
president
owns
all
land.”
Chiwenga,
it
is
understood,
spoke
briefly.
He
reportedly
said:
“I’ve
listened
to
all
your
presentations
and
I’m
convinced
that
all
of
you
support
zvigananda.
It’s
okay.
I
acknowledge
it.“
The
room
reportedly
fell
silent.
Zanu
PF
insiders
say
the
two
documents
have
deepened
factional
rifts
at
the
top
of
the
ruling
party,
which
gathers
in
Mutare
this
week
for
its
annual
conference.
Tuesday’s
politburo
meeting
at
the
party
headquarters
in
Harare
was
followed
by
a
central
committee
meeting
on
Wednesday.
The
Chiwenga
dossier
was
reportedly
supported
by
several
retired
generals
and
some
members
of
the
Women’s
League,
while
Mnangagwa’s
backers
ensured
the
president’s
counter-document
was
adopted
without
debate.
Neither
Mnangagwa
nor
Chiwenga
have
publicly
commented.
But
party
officials
say
the
confrontation
—
the
first
open
exchange
between
the
two
leaders
since
2017
—
has
set
the
stage
for
an
explosive
showdown.
📎 Mnangagwa
Responds
to
Chiwenga
Dossier
in
Explosive
Politburo
Meeting