HARARE – In an unprecedented move, President Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF held an extraordinary politburo meeting at the State House — fooling a number of journalists and officials from the Information ministry in the process — who waited  in vain at the party’s headquarters where such meetings are usually held.

In a notice to its members advising them of the extraordinary politburo meeting, Zanu PF secretary for administration, Ignatius Chombo, who is also Finance minister, did not disclose to the State media the venue of the special meeting.

As a result, dozens of journalists, including those from the State media and officials from the Information, Media and Broadcasting Services ministry, were sent on a wild goose chase as they milled at the Zanu PF headquarters thinking that the meeting was being held there.

Thanks to the convenience and speed of social media, the journalists and ministry officials learnt that the meeting was being held at State House.

The State House is only reserved for State functions. Officials defended the use of the State House to host the extraordinary politburo meeting.

“There is nothing mysterious about that because he (Mugabe) is the president of both the Republic and Zanu PF so he can decide to hold his meetings anywhere. What is wrong with that?

“We normally have our meetings on Wednesdays but we had to do it today yet, Monday is the day the president’s schedule is busy so he decided to accommodate us hence we had to go to State House,” said party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo.

Khaya Moyo, however, refused to tell the media details of the meeting other than saying it had been convened to deliberate on the hero status of the late Zanu PF National Consultative Assembly (NCA) member, Don Kwayedza Muvuti, who died last week.

The meeting did not last long and there were no suggestions that it had been heated as been largely expected following the recent quarrelling by two factions involved in the Zanu PF succession wars.

Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who has been under the cosh from the Generation 40 (G40) faction which is bitterly opposed to him succeeding Mugabe, was all smiles as he shared jokes with Chombo and Defence minister, Sydney Sekeramayi.

Sekeramayi has featured prominently in the Zanu PF succession matrix and is seen as a dark horse to succeed the 93-year-old.

Meanwhile, Zanu PF has conferred national hero status to Muvuti.

The hero status was arrived at during an extraordinary politburo meeting yesterday.

Muvuti, a veteran of the country’s 1970s war of liberation had not been well for some time, having been diagnosed with cancer in 2013.

He will be buried at the National Heroes’ Acre on Wednesday.

Addressing mourners after conveying the message to the Muvuti family, Chombo described the late war veteran as a nationalist decorated with a rich history of the liberation struggle where he survived four serious attacks from the Ian Smith regime.

At one point Muvuti deputised the late Edgar Tekere as Zanu secretary-general in 1979 until after independence.

During the war he was also appointed the chief representative of Zanu to the Mozambican government.

In 1984, he became a member of the party’s central committee responsible for finance as the late Enos Nkala’s deputy.

From 1990 to 2000 he also served as Zimpapers board member after becoming the first black board chairperson for the then Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC).Mugabe fools media on politburo meetingHARARE – In an unprecedented move, President Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF held an extraordinary politburo meeting at the State House — fooling a number of journalists and officials from the Information ministry in the process — who waited  in vain at the party’s headquarters where such meetings are usually held.

In a notice to its members advising them of the extraordinary politburo meeting, Zanu PF secretary for administration, Ignatius Chombo, who is also Finance minister, did not disclose to the State media the venue of the special meeting.

As a result, dozens of journalists, including those from the State media and officials from the Information, Media and Broadcasting Services ministry, were sent on a wild goose chase as they milled at the Zanu PF headquarters thinking that the meeting was being held there.

Thanks to the convenience and speed of social media, the journalists and ministry officials learnt that the meeting was being held at State House.

The State House is only reserved for State functions. Officials defended the use of the State House to host the extraordinary politburo meeting.

“There is nothing mysterious about that because he (Mugabe) is the president of both the Republic and Zanu PF so he can decide to hold his meetings anywhere. What is wrong with that?

“We normally have our meetings on Wednesdays but we had to do it today yet, Monday is the day the president’s schedule is busy so he decided to accommodate us hence we had to go to State House,” said party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo.

Khaya Moyo, however, refused to tell the media details of the meeting other than saying it had been convened to deliberate on the hero status of the late Zanu PF National Consultative Assembly (NCA) member, Don Kwayedza Muvuti, who died last week.

The meeting did not last long and there were no suggestions that it had been heated as been largely expected following the recent quarrelling by two factions involved in the Zanu PF succession wars.

Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who has been under the cosh from the Generation 40 (G40) faction which is bitterly opposed to him succeeding Mugabe, was all smiles as he shared jokes with Chombo and Defence minister, Sydney Sekeramayi.

Sekeramayi has featured prominently in the Zanu PF succession matrix and is seen as a dark horse to succeed the 93-year-old.

Meanwhile, Zanu PF has conferred national hero status to Muvuti.

The hero status was arrived at during an extraordinary politburo meeting yesterday.

Muvuti, a veteran of the country’s 1970s war of liberation had not been well for some time, having been diagnosed with cancer in 2013.

He will be buried at the National Heroes’ Acre on Wednesday.

Addressing mourners after conveying the message to the Muvuti family, Chombo described the late war veteran as a nationalist decorated with a rich history of the liberation struggle where he survived four serious attacks from the Ian Smith regime.

At one point Muvuti deputised the late Edgar Tekere as Zanu secretary-general in 1979 until after independence.

During the war he was also appointed the chief representative of Zanu to the Mozambican government.

In 1984, he became a member of the party’s central committee responsible for finance as the late Enos Nkala’s deputy.

From 1990 to 2000 he also served as Zimpapers board member after becoming the first black board chairperson for the then Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC).