Story by Bruce Chahwanda, Political Editor
Presidential hopeful, Saviour Kasukuwere has come under fire for seeking to ride on the legacy of former President Robert Mugabe, whose children have remained loyal to ZANU PF and President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s leadership.
Robert Mugabe Junior was among the delegates that attended the ZANU PF campaign launch in Chipinge at the weekend, as he has remained loyal to the ruling party and its leadership.
The development has been viewed by some circles as a blow to Kasukuwere, who has chosen to ride on the name of the late former leader, Cde Robert Mugabe in his campaign for the 23rd of August general election.
“The biological lineage is supporting full square President Mnangagwa. Now we have this interloper who has nothing beyond dalliance with the First Family trying to usurp the mantle of the former President. Who are you Saviour Kasukuwere before Bona, before Robert Junior, before their mother to try to say you are the inheritor of Mugabe, a young man from nowhere?
“I worked with Mugabe, left right and centre. I knew the man very well and nowhere in his life does Kasukuwere feature. He is an imposter, he is a phantom candidate with no credentials other than trying to usurp the role which rightly belongs to the family. So Kasukuwere, stand on your credentials because you are a nobody, a dimwit, a dull person who opposed any progress in the first republic,” said ZANU PF spokesperson, Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa.
Political analyst, Mr Elton Ziki said Kasukuwere is an individual whose record in government is not clean and is disconnected from reality on the ground, considering his self-imposed exile.
“Kasukuwere is just an individual who came from the First Republic and we must be aware of his role where he owned massive property acquired through illegal means. Robert Mugabe Jnr is in with the party, attending the ZANU PF campaign launch for the 2023 general elections. So Kasukuwere is an individual with no structures and he has nothing to offer.
“Kasukuwere has an astounding astronomical disconnect of realities back home. He was a minister in the first republic which presided over the neglect of energy and infrastructure which was delivered by the Second Republic from airports and roads, to rural industrialisation which the electorate is happy to see,” Mr Ziki.
Ambassador Mutsvangwa said Kasukuwere’s checkered past is important for him to reflect on.
“Kasukuwere has a lot of legal baggage behind him. Remember a retired diplomat with the United States who described him as a common thug. They must have something solid hence calling him a thug. Kasukuwere, look at your sordid past, we know something about you and there is no diplomatic immunity on candidates. When you land in Zimbabwe, the law will take care of you and you will answer to criminal allegations,” he said.
11 candidates are vying for the presidency in the 23 August general election, with Kasukuwere, who is not in the country, having filed his nomination papers through a lawyer.