HARARE – Zanu PF has ordered its members to immediately stop attacking each other in public and on social media, warning that the growing culture of open infighting is undermining party discipline, unity and its stated founding values.
In a statement issued this week, the party’s Secretary for Security, Lovemore Matuke, expressed concern over what he described as “disturbing developments” in which both senior officials and ordinary members have been openly denigrating one another at rallies and on online platforms.
“We are deeply concerned by the developments we are witnessing within our party, where senior leaders and ordinary members alike are openly attacking one another at public rallies and across social media platforms,” Matuke said.
He argued that such behaviour was inconsistent with the traditions and discipline that have sustained Zanu PF for decades, and warned that it risked bringing the party into disrepute at a time when it is already under intense public scrutiny.
Zanu PF, Matuke said, was founded on unity, respect and collective responsibility — principles he claimed had enabled the party to survive internal and external challenges since independence.
“Our party has always been a home for all Zimbabweans who believe in the ideals of the liberation struggle,” he said, adding that membership came with responsibilities, not just rights.
Using family imagery, Matuke urged members to resolve disputes internally rather than airing them in public.
“Each of us, whether a senior leader or an ordinary card-carrying member, must remember that we are one family. Families do not insult one another in public, nor do they tear each other apart before the world,” he said.
He warned that taking personal and factional disputes to rallies, newspapers and social media weakens the ruling party and benefits its political opponents.
“When we take our internal disagreements to rallies, newspapers and social media, we do more harm than we realise. We weaken the party and give comfort to those who wish to see it divided,” Matuke said.
The statement comes amid rising reports of factional tensions within Zanu PF, often playing out publicly through rival rallies, leaks and coordinated social media attacks.
Matuke said the party had established internal structures — including youth and main wings, as well as senior elders — specifically to handle grievances and resolve disputes away from the public eye.
“Differences of opinion will always exist in any living organisation, but how we handle those differences matters,” he said, calling on leaders to show “humility, restraint and kindness”, and warning against the intimidation or belittling of ordinary members.
He also called for unity behind President Emmerson Mnangagwa, saying internal quarrels were a distraction from the government’s development agenda and Vision 2030 targets.
“We cannot afford to be distracted by personal quarrels and small fights when the future of Zimbabwe demands our full attention,” Matuke said.
The appeal for unity highlights the ruling party’s unease over increasingly visible internal divisions, which critics argue reflect deeper struggles over power, succession and access to state resources rather than mere lapses in discipline.
Matuke concluded by urging members to recommit themselves to unity and collective purpose, warning that those who fuel divisions are undermining the party’s long-term political project.
“Only together can we fulfil what we claim is our mission and build a better Zimbabwe for future generations,” he said.
