HARARE
–
Petroleum
tycoon
Kudakwashe
Tagwirei
has
splashed
out
more
than
US$21
million
on
vehicles
for
Zanu
PF’s
central
committee
members,
reigniting
uproar
over
his
alleged
capture
of
the
ruling
party
and
deepening
internal
divisions
over
succession.
The
businessman
–
nicknamed
Queen
Bee
for
his
vast
influence
in
government
and
the
economy
–
has
reportedly
ordered
300
brand
new
vehicles
for
the
central
committee,
with
more
tranches
planned
for
other
party
structures.
Tagwirei’s
earlier
attempt
to
make
the
donation
had
been
blocked
by
senior
Zanu
PF
figures,
including
Vice
President
Constantino
Chiwenga
and
secretary
general
Obert
Mpofu.
A
compromise
has
now
been
struck:
the
vehicles
will
be
registered
as
Zanu
PF
assets,
giving
Mpofu
authority
to
recall
them
should
disputes
arise.
On
Friday,
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa
presided
over
a
ceremony
at
the
party’s
Harare
headquarters,
handing
over
the
first
30
vehicles
to
selected
beneficiaries.
The
remainder
will
be
distributed
in
phases.
Party
insiders
say
the
rollout
will
start
with
the
central
committee
before
extending
to
deputy
secretaries
and
politburo
members,
then
provincial
leaders,
and
finally
District
Coordinating
Committee
(DCC)
members.
The
extravagance
comes
just
days
after
Chiwenga
tabled
a
dossier
at
a
stormy
politburo
meeting
accusing
Tagwirei
of
siphoning
billions
from
party
coffers
and
recycling
the
funds
into
patronage
schemes
to
buy
loyalty
and
entrench
his
reported
presidential
ambitions.
Chiwenga
demanded
the
arrest
of
Tagwirei
along
with
three
other
businessmen
he
accused
of
state
capture:
gold
dealer
Scott
Sakupwanya,
GeoPomona
boss
Dilesh
Nguwaya,
and
Wicknell
Chivayo,
a
politically
connected
contractor.
The
confrontation
has
widened
rifts
in
Zanu
PF,
where
speculation
is
rife
about
who
will
succeed
Mnangagwa,
now
83.
While
Chiwenga
was
long
assumed
to
be
the
heir
apparent,
many
in
the
party
believe
Tagwirei
is
quietly
positioning
himself
as
Mnangagwa’s
preferred
successor.
Tagwirei
is
under
United
States
and
United
Kingdom
sanctions
for
alleged
corruption,
illicit
gold
dealings
and
what
Washington
describes
as
“state
capture
by
an
elite
network
around
the
president.”
Despite
this,
his
business
empire
remains
deeply
entrenched
in
fuel,
mining,
banking
and
agriculture,
consistently
winning
multi-billion-dollar
state
contracts.
Opposition
and
civil
society
voices
have
condemned
the
car
donations
as
obscene
in
a
country
battling
economic
collapse,
food
shortages
and
decaying
public
services.
“They
are
unrelenting
in
their
pursuit
of
an
ill-fated
2030
agenda,”
said
former
finance
minister
Tendai
Biti,
referring
to
Mnangagwa
loyalists’
push
to
extend
his
rule
beyond
the
2028
elections.
Biti
added:
“They
are
tearing
to
smithereens
any
pretense
of
decency,
legality
or
ethics.
They
have
reduced
the
liberation
movement
into
a
commodity
–
one
so
cheap
and
gullible
that
criminals
with
an
unquenchable
desire
for
power
have
captured
the
state.
Public
funds
laundered
through
cartels
now
represent
an
existential
threat
to
our
fragile
nation.
“One
day,
forensic
audits
will
expose
these
filthy
funds.
The
urgent
task
is
to
protect
the
constitution
–
the
only
buffer
against
the
privatisation
of
the
state
by
bandits
with
a
plan
to
rule
Zimbabwe
forever.
We
are
at
a
crossroads.
It’s
time
to
say
NO.”
For
many
Zanu
PF
officials
in
rural
areas,
however,
the
vehicles
–
mostly
high-end
Toyota
and
Isuzu
double-cab
pickups
–
are
a
prized
campaign
asset,
allowing
them
to
project
wealth
and
reach
voters
in
remote
constituencies.
Still,
even
some
within
the
party
are
uneasy.
Mnangagwa,
addressing
central
committee
members
on
Friday,
told
them:
“You
are
representing
your
province.
You
are
only
the
custodians
of
the
vehicles
–
they
are
there
to
carry
out
party
activities.”
The
controversy
comes
ahead
of
Zanu
PF’s
annual
conference
in
Mutare
from
October
13
to
18,
where
divisions
over
succession
and
the
push
to
extend
Mnangagwa’s
term
are
expected
to
dominate.
Tagwirei’s
shadow
will
loom
large
over
the
gathering
–
the
shiny
vehicles
outside
the
conference
venue
making
a
statement
about
not
only
his
growing
influence
but
also
acting
as
symbols
of
the
party’s
deepening
crisis.