By Victor Fanuel
Mutare — Zanu PF’s Manicaland structures have moved to reassert their authority by endorsing Presidential adviser Paul Tungwarara for co-option into the party’s central committee, escalating a high-stakes factional contest ahead of a crunch Politburo meeting expected to determine his political fate.
Over the weekend, Zanu PF Chipinge district unanimously nominated Tungwarara to fill the central committee vacancy left by the late Dorothy Mabika, a resolution that was subsequently ratified by the Manicaland Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC) in Mutare.
The endorsement came despite last week’s dramatic intervention by national political commissar Munyaradzi Machacha, who issued a letter nullifying the earlier co-option process.
Addressing party members in Chipinge, Zanu PF Manicaland youth chairperson Stanley Sakupwanya presented official correspondence guiding the district to deliberate on the nomination.
After consultations, district leaders resolved to recommend Tungwarara, forwarding the decision to higher party organs in line with Zanu PF procedures.
The fresh endorsement sharpens an internal standoff that has exposed deep factional rifts within the ruling party.
Machacha’s nullification cited procedural grounds, arguing that any replacement to the central committee must originate from the same administrative district as the departed member.
His move, however, triggered pushback from provincial leaders who insist the Manicaland PCC acted within its mandate.
Zanu PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa last week confirmed that the dispute would be settled by the Politburo, the party’s supreme decision-making body outside Congress.
“The correct position is that the party accords serious respect to the deliberations of provincial leadership, particularly Manicaland, which is the second most populous province after Harare.
“Any appearance of confusion will be addressed in the usual manner, as was done in the case of Harare Province.
“The matter will be dealt with at Politburo level, and finality will be delivered on the Central Committee nomination for Manicaland,” Mutsvangwa said.
Mutsvangwa urged party members to remain patient, adding: “For anyone who has anxieties about what is going on, hold your fire.”
“The Politburo will meet, and due finality will be delivered,” Mutsvangwa said.
Tagwirei factor looms large
Behind the procedural arguments lies a broader power struggle, with party insiders pointing to the influence of businessman and political financier Kudakwashe Tagwirei, widely viewed as Tungwarara’s chief antagonist.
Tagwirei’s own co-option into the central committee previously sparked resistance at senior levels, notably from Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, before the matter was eventually resolved in the Politburo.
That episode has since become a reference point for current tensions, underscoring how Politburo arbitration has been used to manage factional disputes at the top of the ruling party.
Sources say Tagwirei now views Tungwarara less as an ally and more as a rival, unsettled by what they describe as Tungwarara’s meteoric rise within party and state structures.
As overseer of high-profile government programmes — including the Presidential Borehole Scheme, Veterans Housing Programme, War Veterans Fund and the Presidential Solar Programme — Tungwarara has built a national profile and an independent support base that some insiders believe threatens established power centres.
The fallout intensified after Machacha’s letter nullifying the co-option was publicly endorsed by Zanu PF treasurer-general Patrick Chinamasa, a move that further polarised opinion within Manicaland and beyond.
Provincial officials argue that the intervention amounts to Harare-based interference in local processes, while critics counter that rules must be applied uniformly.
Countdown to Politburo decision
With Manicaland now closing ranks behind Tungwarara, the focus shifts squarely to the Politburo, where competing interpretations of party rules, provincial autonomy and factional balance are expected to collide.
For Tungwarara’s supporters, the Mutare and Chipinge endorsements represent a vote of confidence that strengthens his hand ahead of the meeting.
For his detractors, the same moves raise the stakes in a contest that has become emblematic of Zanu PF’s evolving succession dynamics.
