The party says Musengezi was “illegally planted” into Zanu-PF by now exiled former Politburo member Saviour Kasukuwere, and had approached the courts with “dirty hands”.
In his High Court application filed last month, Musengezi wants the Zanu-PF’s special session of the Central Committee meeting held on November 19, 2017, which elected, Emmerson Mnangagwa as the incumbent president, to be declared invalid.
However, in response to the High Court application, Zanu-PF acting Harare province chairperson Goodwills Masimirembwa said Musengezi was not a bona fide party member who was “illegally planted” into the party structures by Kasukuwere in 2014.
In 2014, Kasukuwere was the Zanu-PF political commissar. He is now in self-exile in South Africa.
Masimirembwa further claimed Musengezi was a member of the newly formed Front for Economic Emancipation in Zimbabwe (FEEZ).
Godfrey Tsenengamu, a former Zanu-PF youth league commissar is the national coordinator of FEEZ.
“I confirm that the applicant (Musengezi) is not a member of the first respondent (Zanu-PF) in good standing. First, he applied to be a member of the first respondent in 2014 in Hatcliffe (Harare) yet he did not reside there and was using a local address belonging to one Cde Mutimbanyoka’s mother,” Masimirembwa said in his High Court affidavit.
“The party contends that the applicant has ‘dirty hands’ in his respect of his claims to membership. It has been discovered that the applicant is the branch deputy secretary to which no elections were held for branch officials other than the chair.
“It’s believed, on investigations by the DCC (district coordinating committee) security that reports to me as chair of DCC 4 Harare and also as acting chair of the Harare province, that applicant was ‘planted’ into the relevant districts, without the relevant credentials for political and other reasons by the former secretary for the commissariat, Saviour Kasukuwere whom he is allegedly related to.”
Masimirembwa added Musengezi was a member of the new political outfit, FEEZ.
“He was seen to be a member of another political front by participating in their first press conference. He uploaded a video on his Facebook page wearing FEEZ regalia and denounced and disrespected the first respondent, and first secretary (Mnangagwa), the second respondent in the matter. The video footages are attached.”
Meanwhile, in his founding affidavit to Musengezi’s application, Obert Mpofu, the Zanu-PF secretary for administration, said Musengezi’s application should be struck off the roll as Mnangagwa was not liable to civil or criminal charges while still in office.
