ZANU PF Chikomba West legislator Tatenda Mavetera was forced to cancel a rally to celebrate her election victory at the last minute after party supporters snubbed her because of her alleged support for President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s alleged bid to extend his term beyond 2028.
The event was scheduled for Garwe Stadium in the transit town of Chivhu, Chikomba district, but a poor turnout forced Mavetera to cancel the event in frustration.
Zanu PF insiders told The Standard that Mavetera, who is also the Information and Communication Technology minister, was forced to postpone the event indefinitely fearing embarrassment.
Some party members allegedly sabotaged the event as factionalism grows over Mnangagwa’s third term bid.
“The MP showed up at around 5pm, as she had spent the greater part of the day hoping that the event would attract a bigger crowd,” a Zanu PF official told The Standard on condition of anonymity.
“Some party officials felt they were undermined and side-lined.
“They ignored the event and failed to mobilise for attendance.
“That was caused by some misunderstandings over who is aligned to who because party members went about their business and failed to show up, which is not always the situation at other events.”
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At other thank-you rallies within the constituency during the same week, Mavetera was forced to address school pupils as party members were in no show.
In an interview with The Standard, Mavetera was unfazed by the attendance saying the celebrations were at party district level.
“People came and it was a success, they came and feasted,” Mavetera said.
“That was our plan, people would come, eat and go.
“The thank you rally is a done deal.
“The problem with Garwe Stadium is that it is an area where people would be busy going about their own business, but we had the rally.”
Mavetera said the fact that the provincial members were in no-show at the event was not an issue because they were not compelled to be there.
“We had more than 20 celebrations in the whole constituency,” Mavetera.
“There were more than 700 people. Of course, they were not as much as expected, but we had the rally and it was a success.”
Under the current constitution, Mnangagwa’s term is expected to end in 2028.
However, his allies have started campaigns saying they want him to extend his term beyond 2028.
Critics have raised fears that Mnangagwa’s allies wanted to subvert the constitution.
