She succeeded in her campaign, seen to have been carefully planned and executed in collaboration with new vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, who replaced Mujuru at the December congress.
On her tour, she was accompanied by a phalanx of senior party officials who sang her praises. But the excitement has died down dramatically in the post-congress period.
State television and government-controlled newspapers no longer run high profile headlines that feature her as the woman of the moment. Even though she was appointed secretary for women’s affairs, Grace has not held a single meeting with the league.
She has spent most of her time since congress in hospital beds. Immediately after congress, Grace travelled to the Far East with her husband for their annual Christmas holiday. The president returned after a more than a month away and left her behind, saying she had undergone surgery for appendicitis.
“Amai had something bothering her and we said she should be checked. You know appendicitis, maybe it’s God’s doing, to some it doesn’t affect them but to some it does. And this is what was what bothering her and it was removed. It doesn’t have any use and doctors said so. It took Amai some time to discover what was bothering her and it was successfully removed,” Mugabe said on his return from holiday.
He said his wife would urge women to “continue with the struggle”, and promised that she would not tire from what she had started, in apparent reference to the anti-Mujuru crusade. Mujuru, who has since been removed from the party, was accused of clandestine machinations to topple Mugabe.
But the Women’s League seems to be in limbo in Grace’s absence and it has not even publicly issued a statement regarding her illness. Reports last year indicated that the league was divided over the elevation of Grace to the helm.
When she returned to Zimbabwe from Singapore, Grace was subdued. She appeared at the disciplinary hearing of Didymus Mutasa, a pro-Mujuru ally who has been fired from the party, but not much was said about her in the state media.
She did not stay at home long, returning to the Far East for another surgical routine in March. This time, unnamed family members were quoted saying that she was suffering from cancer of the colon and that 30 cm of her large intestine had been surgically removed.
Mugabe has admitted that his wife’s drawn-out illness is causing him sleepless nights, but there have been no public outpourings of grief from Zanu (PF) over her sickness.
The last time Grace gained a semblance of euphoria was in recent weeks when pictures of her looking frail were circulated via social media. She is back in the country now, but hardly anyone is talking about her.
Post published in: News