by Bevan Musoko

The implosion in the still-birth National Patriotic Front continues unabated with the two sides snubbing each other’s meetings, Harare Post can reveal.

The Mutinhiri faction held a meeting at SAPES Trust offices in Harare on 25 June which was snubbed by members belonging to the faction led by Eunice Sandi-Moyo. Members aligned to the Sandi-Moyo faction include Jeppy Jaboon and Shadreck Mashayamombe.

At the centre of the dispute between the factions is the issue of joining the MDC Alliance, which the Mutinhiri faction is strenuously opposing. Jaboon and Mashayamombe have already filed their nomination papers to stand as MDC Alliance MP candidates in Bikita South and Harare South constituencies, respectively. Mutinhiri is also resisting demands by the Sandi-Moyo faction that he should withdraw his presidential candidature in support of MDC Alliance candidate, Nelson Chamisa.

Mutinhiri told the SAPES meeting that he would never yield to the demands by Patrick Zhuwao to step aside.  Zhuwao recently pleaded with Mutinhiri through a letter to withdraw saying that potential NPF donors were not willing to sponsor the party because the party had no meaningful membership which would provide a critical support base to support the NPF presidential candidate. This is a tacit admission by Zhuwao that the NPF has no meaningful membership to challenge ZANU PF.

The members who attended the SAPES meeting told this reporter that disgruntlement was also rising against the leadership of Mutinhiri as he has so far failed to avail regalia to the faction members. At the meeting, Mutinhiri failed to buy even drinks for the attendees leading others to question his commitment to the party.

An attendee who spoke to Harare Post on condition of anonymity said, “Mudhara Mutinhiri is generally failing to provide motivational leadership. How can he fail to buy drinks, yet he is aspiring to be a president? Well, for now we stand by him.”

NPF Deputy National Political Commissar, Jim Kunaka urged members to soldier on despite the financial challenges facing the party.