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Ousted Zimbabwean war veterans minister, Christopher Mutsvangwa, has claimed that President Robert Mugabe is being barred by a faction led by his wife, Grace, from meeting with the country’s former freedom fighters, a report said on Tuesday.
According to NewsDay, Mutsvangwa believed that Mugabe, 92, was being held “prisoner” by a faction of the ruling Zanu-PF party known as the Generation 40 (G40) which is allegedly led by the first lady.
Mutsvangwa accused the G40 of forcing the veteran leader to cancel a meeting with the country’s freedom fighters.
The war veterans announced a few weeks ago that Mugabe had shown an interest in meeting with them after they were brutally attacked by riot police in the capital Harare at the beginning of February.
The date and the venue of the meeting, however, were not announced at the time.
“G40 wants to frighten HE (His Excellency) the patron out of meeting his fellow war veterans. They are now holding him prisoner away from his own life,” Mutsvangwa was quoted saying.
The attacks on the war veterans were allegedly sparked by the factional wars within Zanu-PF.
The former freedom fighters are believed to be backing Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa to take over from Mugabe when he finally leaves office.
Mutsvangwa was ousted from Zanu-PF a week ago on charges of gross misconduct and disloyalty, according to a previous News 24 report.
