Zvobgo said Jonathan Moyo has struck thunder into ZANU-PF MPs


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Former presidential aspirant Eddison Zvobgo told United States embassy officials that Members of Parliament were “absolutely petrified” to speak out against the party. Information Minister Jonathan Moyo had “struck thunder” into the hearts of the ZANU-PF MPs.

Zvobgo who had just been sacked from the powerful politburo said he had reminded Moyo of what happened to Joe McCarthy in the United States during the 1950s – other senators were afraid to challenge him until they woke up to his mad campaign and left him a “broken man” in the end.

 

Full cable:

 

Viewing cable 01HARARE871, ZIMBABWE RULING PARTY OFFICIALS DIVIDED ON MANY

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Reference ID

Created

Released

Classification

Origin

01HARARE871

2001-02-28 14:40

2011-08-30 01:44

CONFIDENTIAL

Embassy Harare

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

 

281440Z Feb 01

 

 

CONFIDENTIAL     PTQ8638

 

PAGE 01       HARARE 00871 01 OF 03 281442Z

ACTION AF-00

 

INFO LOG-00   NP-00   AID-00   ACQ-00   CIAE-00 DINT-00 DODE-00

DOTE-00 SRPP-00 DS-00   EB-00   EUR-00   FAAE-00 FBIE-00

VC-00   H-01     TEDE-00 INR-00   IO-00  L-00     VCE-00

AC-01   NSAE-00 OIC-02   OMB-01   OPIC-01 PA-00   PM-00

PRS-00   ACE-00   P-00     SP-00   STR-00   TRSE-00 USIE-00

PMB-00   DSCC-00 PRM-01   DRL-02   G-00     NFAT-00 SAS-00

/009W

——————CB9626 281443Z /38

FM AMEMBASSY HARARE

TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8311

INFO NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY

AMEMBASSY NAIROBI

AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000871

 

SIPDIS

 

NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JENDAYI FRAZER

 

LONDON FOR CHARLES GURNEY

 

PARIS FOR BISA WILLIAMS

 

NAIROBI FOR TERRY PFLAUMER

 

ADDIS ABABA FOR BILL LUKASAVICH

CONFIDENTIAL

 

PAGE 02       HARARE 00871 01 OF 03 281442Z

 

PASS USAID FOR AFR/SA C. PALMA

 

PASS USTR FOR ROSA WHITAKER

 

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/28/11

TAGS: PGOV PINR KDEM ZI

SUBJECT: ZIMBABWE RULING PARTY OFFICIALS DIVIDED ON MANY

ISSUES OF THE DAY

 

REFTEL: HARARE 847 (NOTAL)

 

CLASSIFIED BY CHARGE D’AFFAIRES EARL IRVING FOR REASONS:

1.5 (B) AND (D).

 

1. (C) SUMMARY: RECENT CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN CHARGE,

POLOFF, AND THREE MID-LEVEL ZANU-PF OFFICIALS REINFORCED

THE NOTION THAT ZANU-PF IS NOT THE MONOLITH OF OPINION

THAT IS OFTEN CONVEYED IN THE PRESS. CHARGE AND POLOFF

SPOKE TO DEPUTY MINISTER FOR EDUCATION, SPORTS AND

CULTURE AENEAS CHIGWEDERE, MASVINGO SOUTH MP EDDISON

ZVOBGO, AND MASHONALAND EAST PARTY CHAIRMAN PADDY

ZHANDA. ALTHOUGH THE THREE OFFICIALS AGREED ON SOME

THINGS, SUCH AS THE IMPERATIVE FOR LAND REDISTRIBUTION

AND THE WEAKNESS OF THE MDC, THEY DISAGREED

SUBSTANTIALLY IN OTHER AREAS LIKE THE DIRECTION OF THE

PARTY, ATTACKS ON THE JUDICIARY, AND THE ROLE OF WAR

VETERANS. END SUMMARY.

 

2. (U) ON FEBRUARY 26, CHARGE AND POLOFF SPOKE TO

DEPUTY MINISTER FOR EDUCATION, SPORTS AND CULTURE AENEAS

CONFIDENTIAL

 

PAGE 03       HARARE 00871 01 OF 03 281442Z

CHIGWEDERE (AND MP FOR HWEDZA DISTRICT), AND MASVINGO

“SUPREMO” AND MP FOR MASVINGO SOUTH EDDISON ZVOBGO.

POLOFF SPOKE TO MASHONALAND EAST PARTY CHAIRMAN PADDY

ZHANDA ON FEBRUARY 27. ALTHOUGH A RANKING PARTY

OFFICIAL AND CHAIRMAN OF THE NOW-PRIVATIZED COTTON

COMPANY OF ZIMBABWE, ZHANDA HAS NO POSITION IN

GOVERNMENT.

 

ZANU-PF MORALE

————–

 

3. (C) RECENTLY REMOVED FROM THE ZANU-PF POLITBURO,

EDDISON ZVOBGO WAS LESS THAN SANGUINE ABOUT MORALE IN

THE PARTY. WHEN ASKED HOW THE RECENT SACKING OF FIVE

PROVINCIAL EXECUTIVES HAD AFFECTED MORALE, HE STATED THE

EFFECT WAS “VERY SERIOUS.” (MASVINGO ALLIES OF

PRESIDENT MUGABE ALSO SENT ZVOBGO’S FACTION RIDING OUT

OF TOWN ON A RAIL AFTER PARTY PROVINCIAL ELECTIONS

FEBRUARY 24. SEE REFTEL.) ZVOBGO TOLD US THAT THE

PARTY LEADERSHIP SEEMED TO BE “INFLICTING DAMAGE ON THE

BODY POLITIC” FOR NO APPARENT REASON. “HOW IS MAKING

PEOPLE UNHAPPY THE WAY TO WIN AN ELECTION?” HE ASKED

RHETORICALLY. HIS COLLEAGUES IN PARLIAMENT ARE HOPING

SOMEONE WILL SET ZANU-PF STRAIGHT, BUT THEY ARE

“ABSOLUTELY PETRIFIED” TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST THE PARTY,

ZVOBGO SAID. INFORMATION MINISTER JONATHAN MOYO HAS

“STRUCK THUNDER” INTO THE HEARTS OF ZANU-PF MPS. ZVOBGO

TOLD US THAT HE REMINDED MOYO WHAT HAPPENED TO JOE

MCCARTHY IN THE U.S. DURING THE 1950S–OTHER SENATORS

WERE AFRAID TO CHALLENGE HIM UNTIL THEY WOKE UP TO HIS

MAD CAMPAIGN AND LEFT HIM A “BROKEN MAN” IN THE END.

CONFIDENTIAL

 

PAGE 04       HARARE 00871 01 OF 03 281442Z

“THE SAME WILL HAPPEN TO YOU,” ZVOBGO SUPPOSEDLY WARNED

MOYO.

 

4. (C) PROVINCIAL PARTY CHAIRMAN ZHANDA ACKNOWLEDGED

THAT THERE ARE VOICES OF DISSENT IN ZANU-PF. HOWEVER,

THE DISSENTERS ARE MORE CONCERNED WITH SURVIVAL RIGHT

NOW THAN CHANGING THE DIRECTION OF THE PARTY. ZHANDA

LIKENED THE PARTY’S “COMBATIVE” MODE TO A RISING FLOOD.

MOST MEMBERS ARE SIMPLY BEING SWEPT ALONG, FRANTICALLY

GRABBING FOR ANY BRANCH THAT COMES ALONG JUST TO STAY

AFLOAT.

 

DIRECTION OF THE PARTY

———————-

 

5. (C) DEPUTY MINISTER CHIGWEDERE WAS MORE CONFIDENT

ABOUT THE PARTY’S DIRECTION. HE BELIEVES THAT IF

PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS WERE HELD TOMORROW, ZANU-PF

WOULD WIN BACK HALF THE SEATS IT LOST TO THE MDC LAST

JUNE. HE THINKS ZANU-PF WOULD WIN BACK ALL THE SEATS IN

HARARE’S HIGH-DENSITY SUBURBS, BUT ADMITTED THE LOW-

DENSITY SUBURBS, WHERE MOST WHITES LIVE, ARE A LOST

CAUSE. CHIGWEDERE CLAIMED THAT THE PEOPLE NOW SEE ZANU-

PF AS THE PARTY OF ACTION THAT CAN DELIVER THEM FROM

THEIR MISERY, BECAUSE THE MDC HAS DONE LI

(297 VIEWS)

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Charles Rukuni
The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

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