As election talk gains momentum, more Zanu-PF officials have issued threats of unrest if the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai wins the next presidential election.
Joining the fray last week was Major-General Douglas Nyikayaramba, who reportedly told soldiers gathered for an army event, that Zimbabwe’s national security is under threat owing to western ideologies being peddled by some political parties.
Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Zanu-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo said in separate interviews recently with the BBC and E-News Chanel Africa that Mr. Tsvangirai would be asking for trouble if he undertakes to reverse the gains of the liberation struggle.
The two warned that Zanu-PF hardliners and the military will find it difficult to hand over power to him if he wins the presidential poll.
Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister, Jameson Timba, told VOA the statements are “coming from a few mad people in Zanu-PF and the military.”
Timba further said the southern African region will not allow a coup in Zimbabwe.
“It’s madness of the highest order. The people of Zimbabwe are currently attending the Second All Stakeholders Conference to receive a draft constitution which was done by the three parties.
“This step that was taken on Monday is a commitment by all Zimbabweans to constitutionalism rather than militarism,” added Timba.
But London-based political analyst George Shire said there is need to investigate what provoked the extreme comments from Chinamasa and his colleagues.
“The little I know of those individuals who made those statements is that they are not people who simply make those kind of statements at random.
“They are people who would have been extremely provoked,” said Shire, adding that “they are not dangerous if you understand the context”.
He said individuals within the army are expressing their point of view that they will not salute a foreign-installed regime of representation.
Shire said the challenge is for the MDC-T to prove that the party is not an extension of foreign interests.
In his latest Nathaniel Manheru column this weekend, reportedly written by presidential spokesman George Charamba, the columnist said there is a lot happening in the MDC-T to excite the military ahead of elections.
Manheru claims there is every indication that the forthcoming elections are being viewed by Rhodesians as another opportunity to stake their claim on lost land.
“Similarly, we have just read news from Australia indicating an ambassador from the MDC-T who stands for this country in Australia, yet attends a function at which ex-Rhodesia soldiers are part of a grand parade. The MDC-T is already giving militancy to its anti-land stance, is it not? She did more, worse. She followed them to a follow-up function and regaled them, the same way they regaled her.
“An ambassador of Zimbabwe hobnobbing with Rhodesians who use her presence to make existential statements about this nation! And you expect that kind of politics to be embraced, all in the name of democracy, free and fair elections?” Manheru wrote.
Joining the fray last week was Major-General Douglas Nyikayaramba, who reportedly told soldiers gathered for an army event, that Zimbabwe’s national security is under threat owing to western ideologies being peddled by some political parties.
Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Zanu-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo said in separate interviews recently with the BBC and E-News Chanel Africa that Mr. Tsvangirai would be asking for trouble if he undertakes to reverse the gains of the liberation struggle.
The two warned that Zanu-PF hardliners and the military will find it difficult to hand over power to him if he wins the presidential poll.
Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister, Jameson Timba, told VOA the statements are “coming from a few mad people in Zanu-PF and the military.”
Timba further said the southern African region will not allow a coup in Zimbabwe.
“It’s madness of the highest order. The people of Zimbabwe are currently attending the Second All Stakeholders Conference to receive a draft constitution which was done by the three parties.
“This step that was taken on Monday is a commitment by all Zimbabweans to constitutionalism rather than militarism,” added Timba.
But London-based political analyst George Shire said there is need to investigate what provoked the extreme comments from Chinamasa and his colleagues.
“The little I know of those individuals who made those statements is that they are not people who simply make those kind of statements at random.
“They are people who would have been extremely provoked,” said Shire, adding that “they are not dangerous if you understand the context”.
He said individuals within the army are expressing their point of view that they will not salute a foreign-installed regime of representation.
Shire said the challenge is for the MDC-T to prove that the party is not an extension of foreign interests.
In his latest Nathaniel Manheru column this weekend, reportedly written by presidential spokesman George Charamba, the columnist said there is a lot happening in the MDC-T to excite the military ahead of elections.
Manheru claims there is every indication that the forthcoming elections are being viewed by Rhodesians as another opportunity to stake their claim on lost land.
“Similarly, we have just read news from Australia indicating an ambassador from the MDC-T who stands for this country in Australia, yet attends a function at which ex-Rhodesia soldiers are part of a grand parade. The MDC-T is already giving militancy to its anti-land stance, is it not? She did more, worse. She followed them to a follow-up function and regaled them, the same way they regaled her.
“An ambassador of Zimbabwe hobnobbing with Rhodesians who use her presence to make existential statements about this nation! And you expect that kind of politics to be embraced, all in the name of democracy, free and fair elections?” Manheru wrote.
