By Tichaona Katsvamutima
Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga has challenged ZANU-PF to confront uncomfortable realities within its ranks, warning that the ruling party risks repeating the mistakes that led to the 2017 military intervention that toppled former president Robert Mugabe.
Addressing the party’s 23rd National People’s Conference in Chinhoyi on Friday, Chiwenga questioned whether ZANU-PF was straying from the principles that gave birth to the Second Republic, while demanding greater internal democracy, accountability and a commitment to improving the lives of ordinary Zimbabweans.
“Are we not repeating the very things that led to the Second Republic?” he asked.
Chiwenga said the circumstances surrounding Mugabe’s removal should prompt the ruling party to undertake an honest assessment of its conduct, policies and leadership, warning against allowing individual ambitions to overshadow the interests of the party and its membership.
“This beckons us to a brutal and honest self-appraisal. We must ask ourselves the difficult questions and confront uncomfortable realities,” he said.
The Vice-President challenged party leaders to establish whether resolutions adopted at conferences genuinely reflected the aspirations of ordinary members or were being driven by those at the top.
“Are our resolutions truly coming from the people? Do our conferences authentically capture the voices of the grassroots? Do we truly understand the aspirations of our people?” he asked.
In remarks carrying political significance amid growing tensions over ZANU-PF’s succession politics and President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s future, Chiwenga insisted that the ruling party belonged to its members and the people rather than individual leaders.
“Our Party belongs to the People, never to individuals. We must listen to them attentively; for they are the ones who entrusted us with this mandate,” he declared.
He also called for constitutional discipline and collective decision-making, warning against changes imposed from above without consultation with grassroots structures.
“While change is inevitable, it must be orderly, anchored in our party structures and guided by our constitution. Change must be driven by the people not imposed from above,” Chiwenga said.
Although he did not name individuals or factions, his remarks come against the backdrop of an increasingly contested debate over the ruling party’s leadership succession and efforts to extend Mnangagwa’s stay in office beyond the end of his current term in 2028.
ZANU-PF structures are pushing for resolutions endorsing Mnangagwa as the party’s candidate in the 2030 elections.
The proposed resolutions could allow Mnangagwa to remain in office beyond 2030 if they are adopted.
Chiwenga, who played a central role in the 2017 military intervention in his former capacity as commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, is widely viewed as a potential successor to Mnangagwa. However, the succession question remains unresolved, with competing interests shaping the debate over the party’s future leadership.
The Vice-President further warned against individualistic approaches to leadership, saying discipline, accountability and selfless service should guide the party’s conduct.
“Discipline, accountability and selfless service must define our trajectory, superseding disjointed or individualistic approaches,” he said.
He reminded party officials that leadership was temporary and should be judged by the legacy they left behind rather than personal ambition.
“We are merely temporary custodians of this vanguard Party, for our time on earth is finite, so what legacy are we leaving?” he asked.
“We are here to serve the people, never to be served by them.”
Turning to economic governance, Chiwenga challenged ZANU-PF to ensure that resolutions adopted at party conferences translated into tangible improvements in people’s livelihoods.
“The true value of a resolution lies entirely in its substance, implementation and its tangible impact on the lives of the people we represent and serve,” he said.
He warned against an economic system in which ordinary Zimbabweans remained dependent on a privileged few, arguing that the ruling party needed to ensure that economic empowerment benefited the wider population.
He criticised inequalities that left citizens as “hewers of wood and drawers of water, surviving from the benevolence of a privileged few.”
Chiwenga’s comments also come amid the growing prominence of businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei within ZANU-PF. Tagwirei was appointed to the party’s Central Committee, subsequently became a senator, was appointed to Cabinet and to the Politburo this week.
His rise has attracted attention against the backdrop of succession manoeuvres, although his political ambitions and any plans to succeed Mnangagwa have not been formally established.
Chiwenga subsequently invited Mnangagwa to deliver his keynote address at the conference, reaffirming his support for the President while emphasising constitutionalism, collective responsibility and people-centred governance.
