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Bulawayo Bureau
ZANU-PF was set to lose dismally in the forthcoming elections had it maintained former president Robert Mugabe as its candidate for the polls, as party members were lying to each other by endorsing him, the party’s deputy commissar Cde Omega Hungwe said on Thursday.

Cde Hungwe, who was addressing party members at Farmers Hall in Umguza district, Matabeleland North province, said Cde Mugabe was too old to stand for the elections and to run the country, but was pampered by people around him who were lying to him.

“I came here to beg you, to ask you to vote for Zanu-PF,” she said.

“I know many are still asking what happened in November, but in all fairness we were all telling lies when we were saying Mugabe for 2018. Honestly, 94 years, a grandfather? He doesn’t walk well, he doesn’t talk properly. If you talk to him and come back later he would have forgotten. Cde Mugabe was now old and the problem was that he married a younger wife who was power hungry.”

Cde Hungwe said Mrs Grace Mugabe had usurped her husband’s power and had vowed that Cde Mugabe was going to run the country from a wheelbarrow.

“We have Minister Mpofu here; his wife cannot go to the Ministry of Home Affairs and start ordering people there,” she said.

“That’s not proper. Grace thought her husband’s power was hers too so she had taken her husband’s role. And as Zanu-PF we were going to lose dismally this election because of Mugabe because we were all lying. She was going round insulting people on podiums and as women it was embarrassing to say you are a Zanu PF woman because of what she used to utter.”

Cde Hungwe said Zanu-PF had not fired Cde Mugabe from the party because the leadership respected him as an elderly person, but had instead fired his wife who was part of the G40 cabal that had surrounded the former President. She commended Cde Mpofu for his leadership role during Operation Restore Legacy as he was the most senior Central Committee member following the disappearance of members of the G40 cabal.

Cde Hungwe also commended the Defences Forces then led by now Vice-President General (Retired) Constantino Chiwenga. She urged people to vote for President Mnangagwa who is working tirelessly to turnaround the economy.

“Our top candidate is ED Mnangagwa who is finishing Mugabe’s term,” she said. “He has done a lot in his bid to address the shortcomings of the previous regime led by Cde Mugabe. So, let’s vote for him so that he can do more for our country.”

Cde Mpofu, who is the Umguza legislator and Zanu-PF Secretary for Administration, urged the people from his constituency to vote for Zanu-PF resoundingly like in previous elections. He quashed speculation that he was chickening out from contesting in the election in Umguza, saying he was paving way for other candidates.

“I am now old, almost 70 years, 67 years this year, sengingumuntu omdala that’s why I am saying let me go to Senate,” said Cde Mpofu.

“I saw some papers saying Mpofu chickens out. Mina chicken out ngisiya ku Senate? You must give others a chance and see how they are going to work.”