BY SAMUEL NJINGA IN MASVINGO
The ZANU PF party leadership in Masvingo Province says it is stepping up preparations ahead of the ruling party’s Annual National People’s Conference to be held in Manicaland later this year, amid growing calls from grassroots supporters for President Emmerson Mnangagwa to remain in power beyond 2028.
Speaking during an inter-district meeting held at Masvingo Polytechnic recently, ZANU PF Masvingo provincial chairperson Robson Mavhenyengwa said the provincial executive had already conducted consultative meetings in six of the province’s seven administrative districts to capture the views of ordinary party supporters regarding key resolutions for tabling at the upcoming indaba.
“So far people are still calling for the President to remain in power till 2030. They are pleased with the manner in which his Government is tackling the land issue, the Village Business Units, the solarised boreholes programme and infrastructure developments such as the road rehabilitation programmes, among others,” Mavhenyengwa said.
He added, “We are a democratic and people-driven party, hence the decision to acquire information from the grassroots.”
His sentiments were echoed by the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution in Masvingo, Ezra Chadzamira, who urged party supporters and citizens at large to rally behind the resolution to prolong the President’s tenure, citing what he said were major socio-economic achievements under the Second Republic.
“The land reform programme is meant to benefit every Zimbabwean citizen. The President is fulfilling the ‘leaving no one behind’ mantra. No sane person can object to that. If you find someone fighting against the idea of empowering everyone then you must understand we are dealing with a psychiatric case,” Chadzamira told Business Times in a sideline interview.
The inter-district gathering, which was attended by hundreds of party supporters, also saw ZANU PF youth members receiving five tractors from the Government as part of efforts to support agricultural productivity across the province.
Anderson Mashavira, the Masvingo Provincial Administrator, welcomed the gesture, saying the farming equipment would help mitigate the effects of January disease (theileriosis), which has decimated cattle herds in recent months.
“The tractors that we received from the Government will go a long way in helping us pursue our farming activities, given that the majority of our cattle were affected by theileriosis that is commonly known as January Disease,” Mashavira said.
Masvingo is among the country’s top cattle-producing provinces but has in recent years suffered heavy losses from recurrent outbreaks of January disease, compounded by erratic rainfall patterns.
As preparations intensify for the National People’s Conference, the province is positioning itself as a key player in shaping the party’s policy direction, particularly on economic empowerment programmes, rural industrialisation, and livestock recovery initiatives.