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THE revived Zimbabwe African People’s Union’s (Zapu) congress enters its last day today with prospects of the party drawing mixed responses from analysts.
Questions have been raised about Dumiso Dabengwa, the main brains behind the revival and whether he has the capacity to lead the former liberation movement.
A certain yoke around his neck is that he will be viewed and compared with the party’s founding leader, the late Vice-President Joshua Nkomo.
Analysts who spoke to The Standard last week were sceptical on whether the revived party would have an impact on the political scene, already dominated by Zanu PF and the MDC-T.
Dabengwa’s links with Zanu PF and his flirtation with Simba Makoni’s Mavambo/Kusile/Dawn project were also scrutinised, raising questions on how Zapu would fare under his leadership.
A public policy analyst, Qhubani Moyo welcomed the revival of the party, saying it was important for democracy in the country.
He, however, questioned whether the party had what it takes to make an impact on the country’s political scene.
“Zapu, as it is, is a party of nostalgia and history. Its revival is based on that but so far we have not been told what it holds for the future,” he said.
Moyo stated that what was detrimental to the growth of Zapu was its “deep-rooted alliance” with Zanu PF.
Further, he claimed that the new party might be aligned with a faction led by Solomon Mujuru within Zanu PF.
“There is speculation that the formation of this party is part of the wider Zanu PF succession game plan and Dabengwa is viewed as too close to Mujuru,” Moyo added.
He described Dabengwa as a hopeless politician who was trying to revive his political life with the re-formation of Zapu.
“They are playing old politics in an environment of new politics, their ideology is unclear and I do not think they are adding any value, either today or in future,” Moyo said.
Political analyst and University of Zimbabwe lecturer, Eldred Masunungure was also doubtful on the fortunes of the new party under Dabengwa’s leadership.
“I do not think it’s a major dynamic in the politics of the country, the revival will not be a major variable,” he said.
Masunungure said the revival of Zapu could have been motivated by either personal or community frustrations.
“The revival may only upset certain individuals in Zanu PF given the Unity Accord but I do not see anything beyond that,” the political analyst said.
Zanu and Zapu signed the Unity Accord in 1987 following a pogrom that killed an estimated 20 000 people, mainly Zapu supporters.
Masunungure concurred with Moyo that Zapu had to exorcise a ghost that linked it with Zanu PF, but so far the revived party had not been able to do that.
He questioned Dabengwa’s leadership credentials and whether he had the stature to lead the party.
The university lecturer dismissed any links between Zapu and the Zanu PF succession issue, describing it as far-fetched.
Another analyst, Effie Ncube said since efforts to revive Zapu started, the party had been in a shell and little was known about it.
“May be after the congress they will be more visible, so far they have been in a shell and little is known about either the party or its leader,” he said.
Ncube said the revived party would not have any dramatic impact on the political landscape, saying the party needed a good politician and an orator, neither of which Dabengwa is.
“I believe he has good intentions, but he has never been a good speaker or a good politician,” he said. “These are attributes that are needed for Zapu to make an impact.”
Ncube said contrary to the belief that Dabengwa is a political dinosaur, he regarded him as a new player on the political scene.
“Dabengwa has never won any hotly contested position and little is known about him as a politician,” he said.
“The only election he won was when he was in Zanu PF and the party was a dominant force.”
Ncube said in that regard Dabengwa is a new player on the scene, who is yet to make a political impact.
Media scholar, Brilliant Mhlanga said Zapu had the advantage of history as it was a party that gave birth to all revolutionary movements in the country, namely Zanu PF and the two MDC formations.
“This gives them strong grounding as a party and is an advantage; this fact alone gives them a stronger potential as a party that they can re-awaken, especially their old liberation credentials,” he said.
“Further, it means the tag ‘puppets of the West’ or ‘Imperialists’ cannot hold.”
Mhlanga warned, however, that liberation credentials do not make a party, as Zapu had to be more visible on the ground.
He said most members of the revived party had to shake of the Zanu PF tag for them to gain any credence.
In addition, Mhlanga said Dabengwa continued to have his leadership mantle shaped and washed by the people he is to work with and the entire membership of the party.
“As a result, it would, therefore, be greatly unfair to Zapu, let alone to Dabengwa the person, for us to seek to single him out of the party structures and judge his leadership style by pretending he fell from some Msasa tree,” he said.
Mhlanga said the argument that Dabengwa was a dinosaur could at best be described as the argument of the inept.
“It has no logic whatsoever and is based on some weak foundation, and is probably a product of characters with a lobotomised way of thinking,” he charged.
Zapu spokesman, Methuseli Moyo described Dabengwa as the party’s trump card rubbishing any links of his leader to a dinosaur.
“He is 20 years younger than the current president and has exhibited political maturity and leadership experience,” he said.
Moyo said Dabengwa was an asset because of his regional links, as he trained most leaders in southern Africa on military tactics.
“Umkhonto Wesizwe (Military wing of the South Africa’s African National Congress) was here yesterday (Friday) and that speaks volumes on the man’s influence on the region,” he said.
The spokesman said in the past few years, Zimbabwe’s politics had been militarised and Dabengwa’s background made him the best person for the job.
He said the congress had shown that the party was going to have a huge impact on the political scene as it had pulled people from across the country.
“We have people from all over the country and if there is anyone doubting us then that person is a fool,” he declared emphatically.
Dabengwa, with a group of disgruntled former Zanu PF members pulled out of the party in 2008 to lead the revival of Zapu.
A substantive leadership is expected to be put in place at the congress, with Dabengwa set to take the top post.
BY NQABA MATSHAZI
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