Zanu PF returnee defies party directive,plays host to unauthorised sports gala

Harare-VACCILATING politician and Zanu PF returnee Shadreck Mashayamombe is in the eye of a storm. The fickle politician has served as Zanu PF Harare South MP before defecting to MDC Alliance where he contested incumbent MP Hon Tongai Mnangagwa but lost in the 2018 . This time, he has been accused of insubordination after allegedly flouting a provincial party directive by providing a venue and proceeding with a youth sports programme in Churu constituency on Saturday, a move that drew the attention of anti-riot police,Express Mail Zim can report.

The event, held at Mashayamombe’s Canterbury School, was billed as a belated Africa Day sports gala aimed at supporting sports infrastructure and grassroots development. However, earlier in the week, Harare Provincial Chairman Cde Goodwills Masimirembwa issued a directive ordering all affiliate organisations to immediately suspend individual programmes and channel full resources into a massive grassroots mobilisation drive targeting over 600 000 party members ahead of National Cell Day Commemorations. Despite the clear instruction, Mashayamombe did not lock his gates and allegedly gave a nod to organisers to proceed with the gathering, prompting police intervention to disperse attendees.

Party insiders noted that Mashayamombe and his crew could have simply applied for a waiver to the provincial leadership to be exempted and go ahead to host the sporting gala, rather than outrightly defying the party directive which is an act of insubordination. “Well, one affiliate, ZimSports4ED, had a brilliant initiative which however coincided with preparations for the National Cell Day and the provincial party directive to halt all affiliates’ provincial programmes,” said a senior party official who spoke on condition of anonymity. “The party law and directives need to be followed because they are reached after wide consultation with the national organ and relevant party authorities.

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So for you to then bless and play host providing venue to an illegal event is tantamount to breach of provincial party directives, which sows seeds of division in the party, and that cannot be tolerated.” The official referred this reporter to Provincial Commissar Cde Voyager Dambuza or Vice Chairman Cde Ephraim Fundukwa for further comment. Both could not be reached at the time of writing, with Cde Dambuza passing the phone to someone who said he was driving to the funeral wake of the mother of Cde Masimirembwa and could not talk. Mashayamombe’s phone went unanswered, but his close loyalists defended the decision to go ahead despite the ban.

“My friend, a lot of resources were pulled in preparing for this sports gala, and cdes from ZimSports4ED ran around seeking support from the corporate world. Two days before the event, you then get a directive to halt all this effort. We need to empathise with the children who were meant to participate,” said a Ushewokunze resident who identified himself only as Cde Tyson.

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