Now up against SADC's insistence that Zanu (PF) must follow through on its resolutions, Jonathan Moyo and Nathaniel Manheru have found a new whipping boy on which to pin Zanu (PF) defiance of SADC - alleged nepotism on the part of SADC facilitator Jacob Zuma who happens to be an in-law of Welshman Ncube of the splinter MDC.

And by some twists of logic Moyo has linked the alleged nepotism with the Marikana massacre in which, in Moyo's reasoning, Zuma may as well have actually pulled the trigger.

Zuma's alleged (by Moyo) unilateral installation of Welshman Ncube as a GPA principal is not as shocking a violation of Zimbabwe's Constitution and sovereignty as they are making it out to be.

Mutambara's presence as a Principlal-with-no-political-party had already become an offensive aberration to most Zimbabweans long before President Zuma's action.

Jacob Zuma: War from within his African National Congress (ANC) and from Zanu (PF) across the Limpopo

Mutambara's status as principal was clearly Mugabe's attempt to neutralise Ncube who had a semblance of legitimacy as a Matebeleland leader despite that he could not muster enough votes to win a seat in one constituency - and replace him with Mutambara who had even less legitimacy.

Zuma's tearing through the legalistic façade that was sustaining Mutambara in that position was in fact a show of leadership by President Zuma, overuling the pretext that was used by Mugabe to keep Ncube out of the of his legitimate role as a Principal.

The Supreme Court's long lead-time for the decision was always going to render the decision academic and of no consequence, with no justice delivered, because the delay would have made the case irrelevant, as has already happnened in several other political cases. So President Jacob Zuman's decision was courageous.

But both Moyo and Manheru are now have exergerating the effect of President Zuma's decision to say that it "violates the rule of law, constitutionalism, non-violence, accountability and respect for human life among many other related concerns," according to Moyo! 

Before I had even absorbed that, in the very next line Moyo linked this with President Zuma's handling of the Marikana massacre, concluding that this undermined his position as a legitimate or authoritative voice against state-perpetrated or sanctioned violence!

Another clear sign of Zanu (PF) gearing up for battle, all orchestrated through The Herald,  is how its chatterboxes have united to condemn the MDC Secretary General Tendai Biti for what they are calling a tribal slur.

For saying the truth which Zanu (PF) politicians spend every day of denying, even while it plays out in front of their eyes, the Herald is trying to whip up sentiment against Biti.

In fact on the particular day that Biti is said to have made this slur against the Zezuru community, he had simply told Zanu (PF) politicians a truth that they all know but which they do not want to hear.

Biti said the draft Constitution was an attempt to curtail the dominance of a mafia that is centred around Robert Mugabe and his family, and which dominates the the country’s body politic, and which cannot be denied.

Everyone who is close or even remotely related to the Mugabes in both Zvimba and Chivhu, where the first lady hails from, either has a political position which he or she did not earn by working, or is in a business that was funded through government money or nepotism, or was sent for some training without any qualifications or posted to some diplomatic post just so that they can benefit.

By saying we are "de-Zezurunising the State" it is clear that Biti was simply saying we are bringing constitutionalism into way the state is going to operate, rather than the nepotistic and tribalistic way that the state is currently operating, with the President's Office and Foreign Affairs looking like the who-is-who of Zvimba and Chivhu and the other linkages to the Mugabes, despite that the First lady only came on the scene yesterday.

Biti even narrowed the tribalism to "Zvimbanisation of this State" which all Zimbabweans know is the case, that being from Mugabe's family and being from Zvimba puts one above everyone else in Zimbabwe, even though there may well be people in Zvimba who do not necessarily belong to the "Royal Clan."

Biti was simply saying the Constitution would make all citizens equal whether they are from Ditito or Tsholotso, and the language he used was as colourful as the other invented term he uses the "zanunisation of the state."

If in fact he tried to retract his statement he was simply being politically correct, but the statement he made was valid and needed to be said, especially on that day that he said it, as Zanu (PF) was actually going through convulsions over its tribally-based ejection of Emmerson Mnagagwa's bid for party leadership. That struggle is not over and will soon be exposing the tribalism in Zanu (PF).

If anything it is Zanu (PF) and The Herald which are trying to foment tribal hatred by going all over the country, from Zvimba to Seke to University of Zimbabwe, to  Chris Mutsvangwa to Oppah Muchiguri and to Charity Manyeruke trying to whip up tribal sentiments to support the war pyschosis that they are trying to build up.

This is clear from this Saturday's Manheru Column which clearly speaks on behalf  behalf of Mugabe, when Manheru talks of a "vicious Zanu-PF counter-assault" to the MDCs push for adoption of the draft constitution - a counter-assault which also entails Zanu (PF) intensifying it on-going attempt to depose Jacob Zuma as SADC facilitator.

It has now escalated withallegations of Zuma violating Zimbabwe's sovereignty by snubbing Arthur Mutambara - over the Ncube issue.

As we have said elsewhere Zimbabwe already left its sovereignty at Sharm-el-sheik the day it accepted to go and negotiate under the mediation of the SADC facilitator, in 2008. Mugabe's head-of-stateship ceased to be on the basis of popular election, but became based on the abiding but the SADC brokered agreement, so Manheru and Moyo should be very careful when they speak of violations of sovereignty.

By its own actions Zanu (PF) invited firstly President Mbeki, then President Jacob Zuma, giving them powers to impose who could be a principals and who could not when it suited them, but now they are accusing the facilitator of violating Zimbabwe's sovereignty while exercising the same powers.

Manheru, though he arrogates it to himself, does not speak on behalf of anyone when he says Mutamba has the sympathy of all fair-minded men and women in his claim for the status of Principal.

Zimbabweans are well-aware that Mutambara was simply elevated to principal by President Mbeki on behalf of Mugabe as part of his Machievalian game-plan, and now that Ncube is about to finally defeat him in court, Zanu (PF) is in another spin to protect him, though both Mutambara and Ncube are of no consequence to the people, as they never won a seat, not even a council seat.

Nor does Manheru's argument make sense that the draft constitution is only a “draft” until it is graduated from its draft status to an officially adopted document by  the principals. It in fact remains a final draft even after it is passed by the second All Stakeholders Conference, until it is passed by Parliament, but there is no role for the principals except to be consulted during the negotiations, which is what happened.

Manheru's failure to interpret what he calls Morgan Tsvangirai's renouncing of his power over the draft only betrays Manheru's lack of understanding of the exercise of power, informed as he is by the Machievalian traditions of his party of hogging decision-making powers, rather than the democratic traditions of the Movement for Democratic Change where Tsvangirai does not find it necessary hog the powers of the principal on matters such as the constitution which are best finalised by the broad consultative process of the party on behalf of the people.

To suggest that Tsvangirai unwittingly renounced the presidency of his party when in fact he had delegated the discussion of constitutional matters to his advisers who are best placed to do so, shows the democratic leadership that is lacking in Zanu (PF). If derision is due to anyone, it not to Tsvangirai, but to Manheru.

But it is not a laughing matter because, in fact, the arrogance of the Manheru we knew during the war years of 2007-2009 is back with a vengeance, talking about issues that are under considerations by all Zimbabweans in terms like, "I don’t see Zanu-PF shifting on that one, even if this threatens the draft (referring to devolution)."

He and his Zanu (PF) still do not seem to accept that this is a negotiation between three parties, where they have to agree, failure which they take the issues back to the people or back to the guarantors of the agreement.

Neither Manheru, nor even Robert Mugabe can tell us as Manheru does, that "devolution is out;  tinkering with presidential executive powers is also out.. the values and ideals of the liberation struggle shall have a pervasive presence in the draft...empowerment will become a constitutional issue.. the issue of dual citizenship is now definitively thrown out, as is also the issue of deviant liaisons (homosexuality)....funding of political parties by foreign interests will be disallowed completely..,the mating clause falls away... beneficiaries of land reforms are protected against arbitrary dispossession..powers of the office of the attorney general have been restored as before...."
Who are you to say this? If you bring those ideas which failed to make it into the draft to the All-Stake-holders Conference, and they carry the day, then that will be that.

Otherwise Manheru and Jonathan Moyo should just been seen as dangerous propagandists who are trying to drive Zimbabwe to a dangerous precipice using the national media which itself is an outstanding issue that SADC failed to address at its Maputo Summit, but which now needs urgent attention.

As the MDC has been given carte-blache by SADC to engage the Facilitator and the Chairman of he Organ Troika On Security we hope to see movement on this and on the issue of the Second All-Stateholders Conference, failure which they should revert to the Facilitator and the Troika Chairman as per Section ... of the Maputo Communique.

As Wilfred Mhanda, a ex-Zanla Commander was quoted at the weekend saying, we must know that Mugabe will not willingly give up power. It is an illusion that Zanu PF will cooperate this time around. They will never willingly give up power.

It is equally an illusion to think that Mugabe is being controlled by party hawks and securocrats. The buck actually stops with Mugabe and Nathaniel Manheru is his spokesman in all senses, which is why it beggars belief that he also remains the permanent secretary for the Ministry of Information which is supposed to cater for the whole government.