ZANU PF Central Committee Members Receive Cars Ahead Of Party Conference

ZANU PF central committee members were summoned to State House in Harare on Wednesday, 15 October, ahead of their meeting as part of the party’s 22nd National People’s Conference in Mutare, Manicaland province.

The conference began on Tuesday with an ordinary session of the Politburo at the party’s headquarters in Harare, with President Emmerson Mnangagwa expected to open the event tomorrow officially.

Central committee members arrived at the ZANU PF headquarters yesterday amid reports that they had been called to State House, Mnangagwa’s official residence, for the distribution of twin-cab vehicles.

Speaking at the 128th session of the Central Committee, Mnangagwa announced the handover of the vehicles, stating that they were intended to benefit both the party and the people. He said:

“You have received the vehicles because you are leaders of the party. The party is the people.

“If the party is for the people and you came from the people to lead them, the party has given you the vehicles to work with the people.

“So, if you have received a party car and if you see a party cadre, you should know that the person has something to do with that vehicle.”

Sources told NewsDay that, although the vehicles had been discussed for more than three months, it was striking that they were released on the eve of such a high-stakes conference. A ZANU PF source said:

“The release of these vehicles is quite interesting since there are people who are going to make noise at the conference, calling for Mnangagwa to stay in office beyond 2028.

“It is strategic for the ED2030 movement, which we are going to see drowning the conference in Mutare.

“This also indicates that those opposed to the term extension will find it very difficult to oppose the move.”

Another ZANU PF insider said that the excitement shown by central committee members, many of whom had to scramble for drivers at the last minute, meant that no one was likely to object to Resolution Number One.

Resolution Number One refers to the proposal to extend Mnangagwa’s term in office until 2030.

Often called ED2030, it was adopted at the party’s Annual National People’s Conference in Bulawayo in 2024.

ZANU PF has around 64 administrative districts, each represented by two central committee members, including ex officio members, meaning Mnangagwa distributed roughly 230 vehicles ahead of the conference.

However, political and social commentator Ruben Mbofana dismissed claims that Mnangagwa had outsmarted those opposed to the term extension. Said Mbofana:

“Indeed, there are those who say that. But I feel they are missing the point and fail to understand the political dynamics within ZANU-PF.

“The party presidency has never been based on democratic choices. Since the party’s founding in 1963, power has always been determined by the military — from the removal of Ndabaningi Sithole and the installation of Robert Mugabe, to Mugabe’s own ousting and replacement by Emmerson Mnangagwa.

“Therefore, basing our understanding of how power will be determined in ZANU PF today on who has managed to buy more people or support is grossly misguided.

“All that the next leader needs is military backing . . . It would take just one decisive move by the military, and the rule would become history.”

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