Veteran Zimbabwean politician and ZANU-PF founding member Enos Nkala has urged the party to drop President Robert Mugabe as its 2012 presidential candidate when it meets later this year for an annual conference, saying his former colleague is too old to keep up with the demands of the nation’s highest office.
Nkala said ZANU-PF as a party also stands to lose if it keep President Mugabe as its candidate for the next elections – generally expected some time in 2012.
Nkala, in whose Highfield, Harare, home ZANU-PF was formed in 1963, says he’s not happy with the direction the party has taken, accusing “cowboys, power seekers and fly-by-night politicians” of hijacking it in pursuit of personal glory and gain.
"I'm not happy at all with the way the party has been going but I make positive contributions by speaking to a lot of senior ZANU-PF politicians and telling them that it is time that it is time for them to let Robert Mugabe rest," Nkala said.
The former defense minister said ZANU-PF can only start rebuilding if Mr. Mugabe hands off to a younger generation which he says has fresh ideas on moving the country forward in line with international standards.
ZANU-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo responded that he respects Nkala’s views – but it is not up to him who should continue to lead the liberation party.