ZANU PF is heading toward a bruising internal showdown as deep factional tensions intensify over the ruling party’s succession battle.
The fight between Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and business tycoon Kudakwashe Tagwireyi, President Mnangagwa’s reported preferred successor has now moved into its most dangerous phase.
Legal Secretary Patrick Chinamasa has added fuel to the fire by reposting a controversial tweet at 2 a.m., days after deleting it under pressure. The post appeared to support Tagwireyi’s co-option into the party’s Central Committee a move fiercely opposed by the Chiwenga faction.
Chinamasa’s social media U-turn comes at a time when tensions inside ZANU PF are spilling into the open, with journalist Hopewell Chin’ono reporting that the Chiwenga camp is now waiting for President Mnangagwa to step down as SADC Chair before launching an all-out political war.
“Chiwenga’s faction is now preparing for an all-out war once Mnangagwa steps down as SADC chairman,”wrote Chin’ono.
Chiwenga’s faction has drawn two firm red lines
1. No co-option of Kudakwashe Tagwireyi into the Central Committee, which would position him to run for party leadership.
2. No support for a constitutional amendment to extend Mnangagwa’s term beyond 2028.
The first battle has already played out and Chiwenga’s camp blocked Tagwireyi’s entry, stunning Mnangagwa’s allies. The second front whether or not Mnangagwa will push for a third term now looms large, especially as whispers of a constitutional amendment swirl in Parliament.
