HARARE - As Zanu (PF) factions jostle for power, there is growing fear that Robert Mugabe's departure will be worse than his presidency.
Solomon Mujuru took command of the ZANU guerrilla army in 1979 under the nom de guerre Rex Nhongo, and he went on to lead Zimbabwe’s armed forces for a decade after the war ended. He apparently fell out with Mnangagwa when the latter blocked his bid to buy into a lucrative chrome mining scheme. But the ethnic allegiances of the key players are also a significant factor in this struggle for the post-Mugabe presidency.
Mnangagwa and Joice Mujuru both belong to Zimbabwe’s biggest tribe, the Shona. But within this tribe, Mnangagwa comes from a clan called the Karanga, while Mujuru belongs to Mugabe’s own Zezuru clan. Tensions between the Karanga and Zezuru trace back to the war, when the Karanga provided the bulk of fighters and military leaders for the ZANU movement. Since power fell into the hands of Mugabe – a ruthless Zezuru intellectual who led the ZANU movement but did no fighting himself – many Karangas feel he has ignored their contribution, sidelined their leaders and promoted members of his own clan.
Zanu (PF) is heavily divided and given this simmering discontent, Joice Mujuru will have to work carefully to earn the trust of Karanga politicians in the looming battle for succession.
Post published in: News