by Innocent Mujeri

Intense jostling for positions within the Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU), ahead of the party’s elective congress scheduled for 27 - 29 August in Bulawayo, is threatening to tear the party apart, with accusations of denying party cadres a chance to freely campaign for positions being levelled against party leader, Isaac Mabuka.

Sources said the race for positions was getting hotter and bitter by the day amid allegations that Mabuka has devised a grand plan to retain the presidency at all cost. The acting leader is reportedly in the process of imposing dodgy structures in the party to further his presidential bid.

The eagerly-anticipated congress, where a new party leadership will be chosen, including the substantive successor to the ZAPU’s late President Dumiso Dabengwa, who died in May last year is expected to be attended by five thousand delegates.

Mabuka, the party’s former chairperson who was elevated to the presidency of the party after the demise of Dabengwa, is facing stiff competition for the presidency from the party’s treasurer, Mark Mbayiwa. Other contenders for the presidency are former vice-president Emelia Mkaratirwa, spokesperson Iphithule Maphosa, deputy national secretary for international relations, Future Msebele, Strike Mkandla and Mateo Sibanda.

To weaken his competitors, the acting president barred other contenders from campaigning for positions until a month before the congress. The directive didn’t go well with other aspirants who have since attached a dictator label on Mabuka.

“Mabuka knows that his days as the president of the party are numbered and he is barring members from campaigning for positions so that he will have an easy sail to the party’s presidency. We will not allow that. I personally have already started engaging with the grassroots and I have since declared my intentions to run for the presidency. Who is Mabuka to deny me a chance to campaign?” said one aspirant who preferred anonymity.

One of the youthful presidential aspirants who also preferred anonymity said ZAPU now needed leadership renewal adding that they would not allow the aging Mabuka to impose himself as the president. The aspirant said he had already started campaigning for the presidency despite the directive that it is not yet time to do so.

Although ZAPU members were forbidden from campaigning for party positions, behind the scenes, campaigning continues to gather momentum.

Mbayiwa and Msebele are seen as the favourite for the substantive ZAPU leadership although some insiders are tipping Maphosa to cause an upset to the leading pack of Mabuka, Mbayiwa and Msebele.

Efforts to get a comment from Mabuka and ZAPU spokesperson, Maphosa were fruitless as their phones were not answered.