Posting
on
X,
Mliswa
launched
a
scathing
attack
on
Chiwenga,
alleging
that
the
Vice
President
was
pandering
to
social
media
narratives
and
opposition
sentiment
by
engaging
in
what
he
described
as
“content
creation”.
His
remarks
followed
the
circulation
of
a
viral
video
showing
Chiwenga
addressing
congregants
at
a
Roman
Catholic
Church
gathering
in
Murewa
over
the
weekend,
where
he
reflected
on
biblical
themes
during
an
address.
In
the
footage,
Chiwenga
turned
to
the
Book
of
Isaiah
and
the
biblical
account
of
King
Hezekiah.
In
his
narration,
he
recounted
how
the
prophet
Isaiah
warned
Hezekiah
to
“put
his
house
in
order”
as
his
time
had
come,
and
how
the
king
initially
resisted
the
message.
He
said
God
later
granted
Hezekiah
an
additional
15
years
of
life,
a
reprieve
he
suggested
ultimately
proved
fraught
with
consequences.
Critics
have
since
argued
that
Chiwenga’s
choice
of
scripture
carried
pointed
political
undertones,
coming
at
a
sensitive
moment
amid
Mnangagwa’s
reported
push
to
reshape
the
Constitution
and
extend
his
hold
on
power.
Wrote
Mliswa:
“This
is
as
brazen
an
attack
on
the
President
as
one
can
ever
give
and
coming
from
his
own
Deputy
its
shocking.
For
one
so
close
to
the
President
to
resort
to
this
is
diplomatically
gross
and
strategically
poor.
“The
VP
is
now
seriously
endangering
his
standing
by
pandering
to
the
whims
of
social
media
and
the
opposition
by
indulging
in
content
creation.
“The
subject
matter,
which
he
poorly
dresses
in
Biblical
frocks
instead
of
explicitly
stating
his
opposition
to
CAB3,
as
any
serious
politician
would
do,
shows
his
level
of
frustration.
“Politically,
the
man
has
been
outmanoeuvred,
and
if
he
is
sincere
that
he
opposes
what
ZANU
PF
has
come
to
represent,
then
he
should
resign
like
any
self-respecting
leader.
“What
he
is
contesting
is
a
party
decision,
and
he
can’t
continue
within
an
entity
whose
thinking
and
direction
he
doesn’t
accept!
“Resigning,
not
metaphors,
is
the
only
redemptive
path
for
him.
“He
should
resign
and
then
canvass
for
the
support
of
the
opposition,
which
he
is
clearly
pandering
to,
against
his
own
party.
“CAB3
is
not
the
product
of
any
single
individual
but
is
a
ZANU
PF
project,
a
party
to
which
he
belongs.
“He
cannot
reduce
it
to
any
single
Hezekiah
when
he
has
been
part
of
the
Cabinet
that
approved
it.”
Mliswa
claimed
that
Chiwenga
had
become
ZANU-PF’s
principal
internal
opposition
figure,
allegedly
fuelling
tension
and
instability
through
what
he
described
as
veiled
attacks.
“He
failed
to
block
the
resolution
from
the
Conference,
Politburo,
Central
Committee,
Cabinet,
Public
Hearings,
and
we
are
now
reaching
the
Parliament
stage,”
argued
Mliswa
“For
the
ruling
party,
he
has
become
the
main
opposition,
providing
fodder
for
continued
tension
and
instability
through
such
veiled
attacks.
“The
biggest
takeaway
from
all
this
is
that
he
lacks
the
necessary
political
muscle
and
internal
support
for
anything
of
significance.
“That’s
a
hard
truth
which
the
doomsday
prophets
should
quickly
recognise
and
stop
putting
pressure
on
him
to
become
some
action
hero.
“Party
members
have
accepted
the
party’s
decisions
and
moved
on.
Only
social
media
and
the
motley
crowd
of
illusionists
hanging
in
shadows
amount
to
the
‘army’
that
is
beckoning
him
into
what
will
surely
amount
to
self-immolation.
“Fuelled
by
this
‘virtual
army’,
he
has
instigated
multiple
political
infractions,
goading
President
Mnangagwa,
who
has
himself
remained
dignified
and
quiet.
ED’s
patience
and
Long-Game
tactics
are
clearly
unsettling
him.
“It’s
just
that
the
political
standards
for
the
opposition,
which
has
embraced
him
on
social
media,
are
very
low,
such
that
they
can’t
recognise
the
absurdity
of
the
VP
remaining
part
of
the
machinery
which
they
deride
and
yet
embrace
him
as
a
shining
light.
“For
the
ruling
party,
he
is
becoming
a
liability
publicly
questioning
party
resolutions
and
feeding
the
public
mentality
with
treasonous
thoughts.”
Post
published
in:
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