Mutsvangwa: ED’s Security Reshuffle Was A Response To Uprising Threat

ZANU PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa has said President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s latest reshuffle of senior leaders within the security sector was a strategic move to place people loyal to him in key positions while removing those he did not fully trust.

Speaking to journalists at the ZANU PF headquarters in Harare on Tuesday, 1 April, Mutsvangwa confirmed that the reshuffle was, in part, a response to the uprising called for by former party Central Committee member Blessed Geza on 31 March. Said Mutsvangwa:

The President, to make sure that the state apparatus was in safe hands, he made dramatic changes in the structures of our state apparatus.

I want to congratulate the new leaders who were put in place as we approached 31 March.

They have proved their capacity by making sure that they are loyal to the President of the Republic, that they defend the interests of the people of Zimbabwe and that they keep the professional traditions of our state apparatus intact. It is well-respected all over Africa.

So, hats off to General Emmanuel Matatu. Hats off to comrade Shepherd Mutamba at ZRP. Hats off to Central Intelligence Director Fulton Mangwanya.

Just five days before the 31st of March, Mnangagwa appointed Major General Emmanuel Matatu (74) as the new Commander of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA), replacing Anselem Sanyatwe (69), who was retired and appointed as the Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts, and Culture.

Sanyatwe is believed to be an ally of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, who is reportedly in a behind-the-scenes tussle with Mnangagwa over the country’s leadership succession.

In a series of significant changes, Mnangagwa also appointed Fulton Mangwanya, the former head of the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, as the new Director-General of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) in January. Mangwanya took over from Isaac Moyo, a close ally of the president.

Furthermore, in December 2024, Mnangagwa named Stephen Mutamba as the new Commissioner General of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP), succeeding Godwin Matanga.

More: Nehanda Radio

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