The holding of the gala coincides with the closure of Zanu-PF’s National Conference in Bulawayo.The gala has annually been held on December 22 to commemorate the Unity Accord, signed by Zanu-PF and PF Zapu in 1987 to bring an end to the Gukurahundi massacres.
This year’s gala will be held under the theme “Uniting for Sovereignty, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment.”Zapu has in the past snubbed the Unity Day galas saying there was nothing to commemorate as the marriage between the two parties had been dissolved following the revival of the party.
Mbuso Fuzwayo Ncube, a Bulawayo based analyst said he feels holding the gala in Bulawayo on the same date as the closure of Zanu-PF’s conference is a tactical move to easily mobilise the party’s supporters to attend.
“These galas have always been a Zanu-PF way of winning support of Zimbabweans in urban areas but the plan has failed and they knew people were going to snub it.
“That is why they had to change the date to 10 December from the usual 22 December so as to easily mobilise party supporters to attend,” Fuzwayo said in an interview.
In the past few years, government has organised annual musical festivals coinciding with the anniversary of the death of Vice Presidents, Joshua Nkomo and Simon Muzenda as well as national holidays such as Independence Day and Heroes’ Day. Organisers of the Unity Gala say they have been “overwhelmed” by the number of musicians that have shown interest in taking part at the all-night showcase on Saturday at the White City stadium.
We have not yet concluded the final line-up but we will be announcing it soon,” said Anyway Mutambudzi the director of urban communication at the Ministry of Media, Information and Publicity.
Mutambudzi could also not be drawn to disclose the names of star musicians that fans could look forward to.Musicians that have consistently featured at national galas include Sandra Ndebele, Chase Skuza, Light Machine Gun Choir, Kapfupi, Gift Amuli, Hosiah Chipanga, the late Tongai Moyo, Alick Macheso, Nicholas Zakaria and Cde Chinx.
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