VP Mnangagwa
Lloyd Gumbo Senior Reporter
ANYONE in Zanu-PF regardless of whether they belonged to former ZANU or PF-Zapu before the signing of the Unity Accord, can stand for Presidency when a vacancy arises, party Second Secretary and Vice President, Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.
President Mugabe and the late Vice President, Dr Joshua Nkomo who led their revolutionary parties and armies ZANU and ZANLA as well as PF-Zapu and ZIPRA respectively, signed the Unity Accord on December 22, 1987 which culminated in peace and unity in the country following the disturbances that afflicted parts of the Midlands and Matabeleland provinces soon after Independence.
According to the Unity Accord, whoever is elected as President under the ambit of the united Zanu-PF must appoint two Vice Presidents with one from former ZANU and the other one from former PF-Zapu.
Cde Mnangagwa, who is also Vice President, said the Unity Accord never stated that only a former ZANU official would be President, while a former PF Zapu would be one of the VPs.
His counterpart, VP Phelekezela Mphoko, also stated this position when he toured Chiredzi in October this year when he said the President of Zimbabwe could emerge from any tribe since leadership of the party was a negotiated deal between the two revolutionary parties ZANU and PF Zapu.
In an exclusive interview with The Herald in Harare yesterday ahead of the Unity Day celebrations tomorrow, VP Mnangagwa said it was also up to future generations to decide whether they wanted to continue with the system where two VPs must come from both former ZANU and PF Zapu.
He said the position of having two VPs from former ZANU and PF Zapu was meant to make sure that they were both represented.
“That was the concept at the time, to make sure everybody is represented at that level,” he said.
“But as we go down the line, I don’t know whether that shall continue to be the same. We leave this to the future generation as to how they look at it. But the concept at the beginning was to make sure that no one, if we are to go to elections, you might find that all might come from ZANU or all in the leadership might come from Zapu or the majority might come from Zapu.
“You would find that the President is former Zapu and the two Vice Presidents are former Zapu or the President is former ZANU and two Vice Presidents are also former ZANU. But then, they made that provision that whoever is President of Zanu-PF must appoint two Vice Presidents, one from former Zapu and one from former ZANU. That was to make sure that the former political parties are represented at the highest level. But in my view, down the line this might fade away.”
There have been claims by some quarters that former PF Zapu could only provide one of the Vice Presidents while former ZANU would provide a Presidential candidate and one of the VPs.
VP Mnangagwa dismissed this claim saying the Presidential candidate could come from either of the two parties. The VP lashed out at secessionists saying Zimbabwe was a unitary State that would not allow itself to be divided.
“Anybody can be President from former ZANU or former Zapu. It’s in the agreement. You must read the agreement. Whoever becomes President, his two Vice Presidents must come from the two former political parties. That is what is in the Unity agreement.
“I sometimes read about things that you people write that there are elements of secessionists, Mthwakazi, something like that, that fringe. You always have people of that nature in every society and that does not stop the revolutionary train to continue its journey. They will shout and bark, the train of development and unity will continue to go,” said VP Mnangagwa.