Malinga calls for party discipline
ZANU-PF Politburo member, Cde Joshua Malinga, has urged Bulawayo provincial party members to stop working as individuals and instead, adhere to party procedures and principles as preparations for next year’s harmonised elections begin.
Cde Malinga, who was tasked by the party’s Secretary for Administration Cde Ignatius Chombo to help the provincial leadership address problems bedevilling the party in the province, said the starting point would be for members to realise that they are members of a party that has guidelines.
“The task I was given by the party’s Secretary for Administration is not insurmountable. I will work with the leadership in the party and province, all members of the Provincial Co-ordinating Committee and even branches and cells. We need everybody on board and that is possible if we are all members of Zanu- PF. It’s possible to make the province strong if we all work together. But we have to understand that we are members of a party that has procedures, principles and protocol to be followed. We should use the same guidelines to organise people to work together,” he said in an interview last week.
Cde Malinga said while members might differ in opinion on certain issues, that should not deter them from working together.
“We might have division of opinion and in some cases cliques. That is because people operate as individuals and not members of the party. We will make sure we deal with the issue of divisions. We are not saying that people should not have different opinions but people should have unity of purpose and work for the party to win. We will look at a number of issues that were raised, including the issue of suspensions. We want that addressed as soon as possible and I think people are ready to forgive and forget and move forward. If we work as members of the party that is possible,” said Cde Malinga.
He said the position of provincial chairman Cde Dennis Ndlovu was not under discussion as he was a substantive chairman, despite calls from some members of the province for elections for the provincial leadership.
“We will deal with issues as they come but the chairman is substantive. That is the decision of the Politburo. Let me not go further than that but my point is we have a programme that will make us work together in the province. Politics is a holistic matter. You can’t succeed if you leave others out so we have to listen to everybody and then become one,” said Cde Malinga.
Cde Malinga said the province should immediately focus on the mobilisation of members and voter registration, as instructed by President Mugabe.
He said the province has performed badly in previous elections for councillors and MPs because of weak structures.
“We are going to have a solid party as we go to the elections. We are in the process of mobilising members and making sure that people are registered voters. We have been performing badly as a province in recent elections with few MPs and even in council. Of course we made gains by winning in the by-elections but that will count to nothing if we don’t create solid structures from the ground. Remember we won with small margins, which means there is a lot to be done,” said Cde Malinga.
The ruling party won all six seats in by-elections in Bulawayo held after the 2013 harmonised elections. Addressing Zanu-PF supporters at the party’s Bulawayo provincial headquarters last Sunday, Cde Chombo also challenged the ruling party’s provincial leadership to unite and come up with an effective strategy that will ensure victory for the party in the 2018 elections.
In May this year there were violent skirmishes at Davies Hall when rival groups clashed during a Provincial Co-ordinating Committee (PCC) meeting. Cde Chombo ordered the police to arrest party members who clandestinely hold unsanctioned meetings at Davies Hall.
“The President while he was in Lupane on Friday last week denounced acts of violence. We have a case here where violence was witnessed at Davies Hall during a PCC meeting. No one should hold unsanctioned meetings at Davies Hall. If you want to hold a meeting you should first seek permission from the provincial chairman. I have since ordered the police to arrest those who hold unsanctioned meetings,” he said.
Cde Chombo urged the provincial leadership to unite party members and that members should desist from vote buying and factionalism.
“I urge you to sit down as the Zanu-PF provincial leadership under the guidance of members of the Politburo, Central Committee and National Consultative Assembly and come up with a strategy that will ensure an election victory for our party. We want to reclaim all council wards from MDC-T because we cannot have a situation where as rate payers you contribute to the development of the city yet there is no meaningful service delivery from the MDC-T led council. If we win all council wards, it means we will also win all Parliamentary seats.”
Cde Malinga also clarified that he has no mandate to call for a PCC meeting, but would meet with the leadership from across board to help the province organise structures.
“I do not call for a PCC. I do not have that mandate, but I will call for meetings with the leadership so that we work together with other leaders in the party going forward, following party rules and procedures. We were supposed to meet with some leaders today (Saturday) but that has been postponed to a later date.”