By John Cassim
HARARE
The open dispute between Zimbabwe's first lady, Grace Mugabe, and recently sacked vice president Joyce Mujuru could split the ruling ZANU-PF party down the middle, analysts have said.
"There is no way the ZANU-PF can remain strong after sacking the vice president, several ministers and provincial chairpersons," political analyst Pedzisai Ruhanya told The Anadolu Agency.
As a result, he argued, "the party will be weaker structurally."
President Mugabe on Tuesday sacked Mujuru and eight cabinet ministers said to be close to her – the first such measure to be seen in Zimbabwe since 1980.
"It had become evident that her conduct in the discharge of her duties had become inconsistent with expected standard[s], exhibiting conflict between official responsibilities and private interests," the presidency said in a statement.
Mujuru was removed from the ruling party's central committee at an elective congress that convened last week.
She was recently accused of corruption and plotting to kill the 90-year-old Mugabe, who is currently serving out his seventh five-year term as president.
Mujuru, for her part, rejects the accusations, insisting that "no iota of evidence has been produced to give credence to the allegations."
Many observers believe Mugabe's wife, Grace, is behind the sacking of Mujuru, who had been seen as a possible successor to Mugabe – especially given that the first lady had openly attacked Mujuru in the past and accused her of trying to topple the regime.
Grace, who was elected head of the ruling party's women's wing last week, is now widely seen as a possible successor to her husband, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980.
Controlled
When Grace advised Mujuru to resign or face dismissal, many Zimbabweans thought the first lady was daydreaming – considering that, since 1980, the president had not sacked any of his deputies.
Former vice-presidents Joshua Nkomo, Simon Muzenda and John Langa Nkomo all died while in office.
That's why many observers see the dismissal of Mujuru and the eight cabinet ministers as confirmation that Mugabe is now subject to the whims of his wife.
"We should not rule out the age factor," said Jacob Mafume, a lawyer and opposition activist.
"Mugabe's wife appears to be taking advantage of her husband's age, putting him under her whim," he suggested.
Mafume added that anyone who had grandfathers or grandmothers knew how the elderly made decisions.
"They insult, sulk, cry, laugh – a bundle of kaleidoscopic actions," he said.
Kudzai Kwangware, another Harare-based political analyst, agrees.
"Mujuru should have resigned the moment First Lady Grace urged her to do so; she failed to realize Grace was now calling the shots," he told AA.
Kwangare warned that the manner by which Mujuru was pushed out would undermine morale within the ZANU-PF's ranks.
To ordinary Zimbabweans, Mujuru might have appeared better than her ZANU-PF colleagues – had it not been for her history with corruption charges.
She has allegedly obtained huge sums allocated for the compensation of war veterans and has been accused of having stolen diamonds from the Marange Diamond field in 2006 – charges she has never denied.
Analyst Charles Mongongera, for his part, said Mujuru – along with scores of allies also fired by Mugabe – were unlikely to join the opposition.
"That's the end of her political game," he told AA.
Mugabe on Wednesday appointed two deputies, barely 24 hours after Mujuru.
He named Emerson Mnangagwa, a liberation war veteran, as first vice-president and Phekezela Mphoko as second.
The president said the two deputies would also rotate as national chairman of the ruling ZANU-PF, further bolstering the authority of the two new appointments.
Insiders here say Mnangagwa secured his appointment to the post by aligning himself with the first lady.
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