By Lizwe Sebatha 

BULAWAYO – War veterans in Mberengwa have petitioned President Robert Mugabe to reprimand local Member of Parliament and Agriculture Minister Rugare Gumbo whom they accuse of using food handouts to punish ruling ZANU PF party rivals in the district. 

The war veterans accuse Gumbo of denying wards that opposed his candidature in the 2005 parliamentary elections access to food obtained from the Grain Marketing Board under a government scheme to support drought-stricken villagers. 

War veterans’ leader and ZANU PF chairperson for Mberengwa East district Rudo Chakona yesterday said the letter to Mugabe was sent a fortnight ago. 

“War veterans are not happy with Gumbo because he is using his portfolio to fix those wards that were against his candidature in the 2005 elections by denying them food,” said Chakona. 

Gumbo denies the allegations. 

“All those you say are complaining about me should approach me as their MP than to rush to the President,” Gumbo said yesterday. 

Chakona said Nyamhondo and Garenyama wards in the district were the worst affected areas. 

The war veterans’ leader said the food denial was punishment for the two areas’ open support for Godwill Shiri, Gumbo’s rival in the ZANU PF primaries ahead of the 2005 parliamentary polls. 

Shiri was eventually expelled from the ruling party for standing as an independent candidate in the parliamentary elections in 2005 after contesting that Gumbo had rigged the primary elections. 

Gumbo had earlier lost the primary elections before a re-run was ordered. 

This is the latest case of factional fighting in the fractious Mberengwa East, which was last year rocked by the suspension of three senior officials accused on allegations of indiscipline. 

Gumbo later accused ZANU PF chairman John Nkomo and political commissar Elliot Manyika of fuelling the divisions in his constituency after they suspended three Mberengwa East District Coordinating Committee (DCC) members aligned to him on allegations of indiscipline. 

He has continued to work with the suspended DCC members in defiance of Nkomo and Manyika, arguing that their suspension was illegitimate. 

Zimbabwe’s main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party and human rights groups have in the past accused ZANU PF party officials of denying food aid to opposition supporters as punishment for failing to back the ruling party. ZANU PF has in the past denied the charge. - ZimOnline