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Cde Chombo

Walter Nyamukondiwa Chinhoyi Bureau
Zanu-PF secretary for administration Cde Ignatius Chombo has warned those already on the campaign trail for the 2018 harmonised elections to stop wasting their resources as the party is yet to set the criteria and attributes of candidates.

Speaking at the first Mashonaland West provincial coordinating committee meeting in Chinhoyi at the weekend, Cde Chombo said some will rue wasted resources after the criteria renders them ineligible to contest.

“Campaigns enable us as politicians and aspiring candidates to be known and voted for in various positions including Senatorial, National Assembly and the women’s representatives but for now, stop it,” said Cde Chombo.

“The party will set the criteria which has to be followed and this will include, among other things, the number of years that someone has served in the party.”

He said the party would sit to come up with the criteria and give a go-ahead for people to make their intentions known and proceed to campaigning.

Cde Chombo said prospective candidates should be mobilising financial resources and not splurging them prematurely as they may do so in vain after falling foul of the criteria.

He warned some members against hijacking the cell level restructuring programme to plant loyal but ineffective leaders who will only serve to propel individuals into leadership without regard to the party.

He said everyone should be focused on building a strong party and declared that 2018 harmonised elections would go ahead as prescribed by the Constitution contrary to some opposition assertions.

“Let me say it here, that 2018 elections will not be postponed as some are saying because we have never failed to hold elections when they are due according to the Constitution,” said Cde Chombo.

This follows reports in some sections of the media that Zanu-PF was contemplating postponing elections to 2021 presumably to reorganise itself.

He said this was daydreaming orchestrated by rumour-mongers.

Ironically, Zanu-PF has emphatically won all but one seat in by-elections held after the 2013 harmonised elections with the general trend showing a party on the ascendency.

He called on party chairpersons to come up with comprehensive party programmes that lay the roadmap to the 2018 harmonised elections.

Zanu-PF has begun restructuring of its cells with provinces given up to end of March to finalise the process.

This comes after the party successfully restructured its districts in 2015.

Mashonaland West Zanu-PF provincial chairman Cde Ephraim Chengeta expressed optimism that the process would go on well after the provincial commissar Cde John Yotamu presented the department’s programme of action.

Mashonaland West provincial affairs minister Cde Faber Chidarikire hailed the Command Agriculture programme but called for its decentralisation to allow smooth flow of inputs.

“While it is commendable, there were also some bottlenecks that need to be addressed such as availing of inputs on time. Some are getting ammonium nitrate fertiliser now,” he said.

Cde Chombo said like any programme, teething challenges were bound to occur but more work was being put in to improve the programme next season.

The meeting was also attended by Politburo member Cde Prisca Mupfumira and Senate president Cde Edna Madzongwe, Central Committee members, Members of Parliament and provincial members.