Political Reporters

ZANU PF members who were unsuccessful in their attempts to run for office during the primaries have teamed up with winners to resoundingly win the vote in the by-election scheduled for February 3.

This weekend, Munyaradzi Choto, the chairman of the Zanu PF branch for Chitungwiza, told the Harare Post that the party had demonstrated discipline by uniting both its winners and losers for the benefit of the party as a whole. According to Choto, internal democratic processes had never caused dissension in the party's past.

“Although it is true that no one enjoys losing, particularly when it is personal, the party has instilled a sense of unity among its members in order to achieve its goals. Consequently, candidates who give up on opportunities to serve as the party's elected representatives, accept their defeat with dignity, and cheer on the victorious.

 “We had a variety of members who participated in this effort, but they were unsuccessful in their attempts to represent the party in the three wards we are running for here in Chitungwiza. Nevertheless, these members are helping with the campaign. In Zanu PF, we value collective victory ahead of individual glory as the party is our shared movement," Choto emphasised.

The incumbents in Chitungwiza's three local authority seats were forced out due to internal power struggles within the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), which pitted Sengezo Tshabangu against former CCC leader, Nelson Chamisa.