The formation, Friends of Zapu, is being spearheaded by former Zapu heavyweights. Retired Colonel Lazarus Ray Ncube, a former Bulawayo Provincial chairman of the re-launched opposition party, who was fired after a fall-out with party leader Dabengwa, is at the forefront. Membership of the assembly is also said to include Smile Dube, founding national spokesman of the Zapu re-incarnation, former Speaker of Parliament Cyril Ndebele, and former South Africa provincial chairman, Dubizizwe Joli.
Serving members of the main structure have also been invited to join the formation, but hard-cores who follow Dabengwa have dismissed the gesture as an attempt by the former powerful members to “steal the party”.
“If you look at the calibre of people who are behind this grouping, you will see that they were all expelled from the party and have not yet made a truce with the leadership. How can they be trusted? This is just a way of trying to prove that they can lead better than Dabengwa and we have resolved not to be part of that,” said a Johannesburg-based member of the party’s Council of Elders.
A member of the new formation, which is set to have a meeting in South Africa within the next few weeks, said the move is meant to “save Zapu from demise” in the hands of Dabengwa. “We understand that there are genuine people who believe in true Zapu, but they are being frustrated by Dabengwa, who has made sure that the party does not grow, so we have come to save it,” said the member.
There, however, seemed to be no common understanding of the new formation within Zapu, as Busani Bhalagwe, the party’s spokesman for South Africa, sang a different tune from the elders.
“Friends of Zapu is not a political party, but was formed by Zapu members to raise resources for the party as elections are beckoning,” said Bhalagwe early this week.
Post published in: News