ZANU-PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa has accused Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga of attacking a new politically connected elite, the so-called “zvigananda”, to boost his own presidential ambitions.
Chiwenga recently revived the liberation-war term to criticise a small group of well-connected businessmen with links to state patronage and corruption.
Speaking at a press conference at ZANU-PF headquarters in Harare on Thursday, Mutsvangwa defended the group and traced the word’s origins.
“The name Zvigananda generally refers to what is called the petty-bourgeoisie. In Marxist Class analysis, people are placed in classes, and there is a class struggle between one class and the other; the workers, the peasants, the middle class and the super rich,” Mutsvangwa said.
“The petty-bourgeoisie was translated to Zvigananda. Now, because people were ambitious for power in the 1976 Vashandi Rebellion, they started labelling someone as a Chigananda in the war.
“But being labelled in a class is in relation to ownership of property, and no one owned property in the war.
“Behind it was an attempt to grab power. If you start labelling other people, then out of that, you say this should happen to them, it is not right.”
Mutsvangwa did not name Chiwenga, but given his past criticism and the Vice-President’s perceived presidential ambitions, the reference to zvigananda left little doubt about who he was referring to.
“There is nothing wrong about acquiring property, about having a middle class,” said Mustvangwa.
“You abuse that term now and want to use it for political purposes because you have ambitions…that is not the way to go.
“If a black man makes money, there is a problem, but Indians and white people can make as much as they want?
“Zimbabweans deserve better in terms of political leadership, especially leadership that went to war. We need to conduct ourselves in the correct manner.”
Related:
EXPLAINED: Why Bill No. 3 Will Pass, And How President Mnangagwa Could Still Lead Until 2042 Without “Extending” His Term
Mutsvangwa Tells Ambitious ZANU-PF Bigwigs To Wait Until 2030