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Presidential Affairs Minister Cde Didymus Mutasa addresses a press conference while a Government official, Mr Jonah Sithole, looks on in Harare yesterday

Felex Share Herald Reporter
MINISTER of State for Presidential Affairs and Zanu-PF secretary for administration Cde Didymus Mutasa has dismissed media reports that the Politburo gagged Information, Media and Broadcasting Services Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo from commenting on party issues in the media.

NewsDay yesterday quoted Zanu-PF national spokesman Cde Rugare Gumbo as saying the extraordinary Politburo meeting held on Saturday had ordered Prof Moyo to “stop taking internal party issues to the media’’.

Addressing journalists in Harare yesterday, Cde Mutasa said the Politburo only discussed the issue of provincial elections.

“The reports are untrue. The Politburo did not gag Cde Moyo,” he said.

“The Politburo never sat to consider this reconciliation of warring parties because it was never there. It sat to consider whether or not the report on elections in Mashonaland Central was acceptable and the Politburo said it was acceptable and it should go on.

“It also considered whether or not the elections should be held in the remaining seven provinces and it said yes and we said to one another goodbye and good night,” Cde Mutasa said.

He said the wrangles reported in the media had nothing to do with the Politburo meeting.

“We saw your newspapers saying D-Day for Zanu-PF and we ask what was the D-Day about? Who talked to you about that,” he said.
Cde Mutasa said it was pointless for Zanu-PF to gag Prof Moyo because of the nature of his portfolio.

“As a matter of fact, if we gag Cde Moyo we are doing a disservice to us as a party and as Government because we want his ministry to be the mouthpiece to advance the Zim Asset programme and to do other things the President appointed him for,” he said.
Cde Mutasa said the so called verbal showdown between party cadres was being fuelled by the media.

“This wrangle which has happened over the last two weeks was very unfortunate and it was propelled by you who do not want to see peace in the country among your leadership,” he said.

“You want to continue causing clashes between the leadership and I think it is very bad. If it is you who are doing it please stop it we do not want that. Please regard all of us as your leaders because we come from the people who voted for us and we come from the most important person in this country, who is the President who has appointed us either in the Politburo or in our ministries. Therefore we want to work harmoniously. Please leave us alone and do not make us fight.”

Cde Mutasa urged the media to be responsible in their reportage.

“If you are reporting on me or anyone else do that correctly,” he said.

“Report correctly the wrong things happening including the names of those who misbehave and this is what we are saying with Cde Gumbo and Cde Moyo for the development of the country.

“You should see where the country is going and help it towards that. Be able to judge and see whether what you are doing is destructive or not. If you do destructive things attributing it to someone who did not say that then that we do not want.”

He said of late some media organisations carried “terrible” reports on him but he never complained, adding that the media should stay out of the internal fight taking place in the party, if any.

“I never complained and just said to myself this is being done by young people who are not mature and barely understand what we are doing,” he said.

“It is now placing you as instruments which lead factional fighting, aiding a problem that the leadership is grappling with. You as the media what do you have to do with that fight? Who  sent you to participate in the wrangle?”

Cde Mutasa added: “When Prof Moyo asked me to convene this press conference I agreed but I took the opportunity to ask him why he wanted us to speak to the public media which had snubbed us all along.

“Nothing has appeared about me in the manner I expect as a minister and if you have your own newspapers cutting you off what do we do? The public media has banned us and you do not see me on television, you have never seen me being reported in The Herald correctly even our paper Manica Post.”

Cde Mutasa said being the secretary for administration in Zanu-PF, his duty was to “work after and implement party decisions”.

“I implement decisions of the Politburo with whoever in the Politburo is responsible for that function,” he said.

“When Cde Moyo requested this meeting to take place I asked them (Cdes Moyo and Gumbo) to be here but unfortunately Cde Gumbo has gone to China and Cde Moyo is doing something else.

“I would have liked both to be here because they are the two to reconcile. It is not me reconciling with anyone but it is me who has to get these two gentlemen together and make them work for the benefit of the party, Government and country.”

Cde Mutasa said Zimbabwe would not move forward if there was disharmony in the party.

“That is why I have accepted to be here to talk to you and if things were being done properly we should have these sort of meetings with you regularly so that we inform you what the party is talking about and what the Government is doing,” he said.