Mugabe-linked NPF splits

could not be dismissed by unelected people.

Rtd Brig Gen Mutinhiri announced that the NPF will hold consultative meeting to elect substantive national executive.

“The processes that replaced Cde Mugabe and others was wrong in my view, I disagreed,” said Rtd Brig Gen Mutinhiri.

“I could no longer continue to subscribe to Zanu-PF and at the same time had to resign from Parliament because I was there on Zanu-PF ticket,” he said. “I consulted with the former President Mugabe who said to me if you have the guts, go ahead. So myself and others, we decided to form the NPF, which I am the founding president of and it is registered as such by Zec.”

Rtd Brig Gen Mutinhiri said Mr Mawarire and his group that included the faction’s interim leader Mrs Sandi Moyo, had expelled themselves from the party by virtue of their conduct.

He said the NPF had not yet made a decision on whether to join MDC Alliance.

He castigated Mawarire and his camp for publicly supporting the MDC Alliance presidential candidate Mr Nelson Chamisa during last Tuesday’s demonstration in Harare without first consulting other party members.

“NPF is open to join any of these alliances but has not taken a move yet towards that,” he said.

“There are people who have gone out of their way to chant slogans of other political parties. Those have done it on their own. They have not been sanctioned by NPF. We believe we are a people’s party and such decision like joining alliances cannot be done without the party holding wide-ranging consultations.”

He said as it stands the NPF leadership has not been elected.

Earlier on Mawarire announced that the NPF had fired Rtd Brig Mutinhiri and that they were going into alliance with MDC Alliance ahead of the harmonised elections set for end of July.

Both Mr Mawarire and Mrs Moyo addressed the press conference on the party’s resolutions.

Mr Mawarire said the party resolved to recall Rtd Brig Gen Mutinhiri from his current position for teaming up with a former cabinet minister to hire thugs to disrupt an NFEC meeting at the Margolis Resort in Harare on Thursday.

He said the decision to recall Cde Mutinhiri was unanimously endorsed by the NFEC members present at the meeting.

Mr Mawarire said the NPF was expected to conclude an electoral pact with the MDC Alliance by Monday next week, saying the issue of parliamentary seats to be allocated to the party was a done deal.