Zanu PF national chairperson and Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri has been accused of orchestrating a plot to block Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture minister Anseleem Sanyatwe from joining the ruling party’s powerful central committee, amid allegations of vote-buying and factional maneuvering within the party’s Manicaland structures.
Sources within the ruling party allege that Muchinguri-Kashiri, who fears Sanyatwe’s growing influence in Manicaland since his retirement from the army, is pushing for MenBelievED founder Justice Matsatsire to be co-opted into the central committee instead. The move would effectively sideline Sanyatwe – a former Zimbabwe National Army commander – from Zanu PF’s top decision-making body outside congress, leaving him a junior figure in provincial politics.
Sanyatwe, who is widely regarded as a close ally of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, is said to have become a target of loyalists to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who reportedly view him as an extension of Chiwenga’s influence in the party. The VP is believed to oppose a plan by Mnangagwa’s inner circle to extend the president’s rule by two years, to 2030.
According to impeccable Zanu PF insiders, Muchinguri-Kashiri recently met with the party’s political commissar Munyaradzi Machacha and secretary for security Lovemore Matuke at the Zanu PF headquarters in Harare to deliberate on the issue.
“On November 4 there was a meeting at the Zanu PF headquarters between Muchinguri-Kashiri, Machacha and Matuke where it was resolved that Justice Matsatsire would be co-opted into the central committee,” one well-placed source said.
“They also resolved to find all means possible to block Lt General Sanyatwe from being co-opted due to his links to VP Chiwenga. Money is already changing hands – all provincial members will reportedly be paid US$500 to support Matsatsire’s elevation while rejecting Sanyatwe.”
Matsatsire, a known ally of Muchinguri-Kashiri and a vocal supporter of Mnangagwa’s “ED2030” agenda through his MenBelievED organization, hails from Mutasa District in Manicaland. His endorsement, insiders say, is part of a wider strategy to consolidate Muchinguri-Kashiri’s control over the province and ensure the loyalty of key provincial figures ahead of Zanu PF’s next elective congress.
The growing influence of Sanyatwe – once a powerful military figure who was retired in March this year in what analysts described as a “coup-proofing” move – is reportedly unsettling the Defence minister.
“Muchinguri-Kashiri is afraid of power shifts in the province. She believes Sanyatwe could overtake her as the political godmother of Manicaland,” another source claimed. “If he rises through the ranks, he could rally the whole province behind VP Chiwenga.”
Factional tensions within Zanu PF have continued to simmer as rival camps aligned to Mnangagwa and Chiwenga jostle for influence ahead of the party’s 2026 congress.
At the recent Zanu PF conference, Vice President Chiwenga openly condemned corruption and the abuse of the Agenda 2030 development vision – which has increasingly been personalised as a campaign slogan for Mnangagwa’s bid to stay in power beyond 2028.
Chiwenga also reignited his anti-corruption rhetoric, warning against the rise of so-called “Zvigananda” – a term he coined to describe politically connected businessmen accused of looting public funds through inflated tenders and opaque contracts.
Observers say the ongoing tug-of-war between Muchinguri-Kashiri and Sanyatwe reflects deeper divisions in the ruling party as the battle for post-Mnangagwa succession intensifies.
Zanu PF officials could not be reached for comment at the time of publication.
Source – The Standard
