Zim GBC News | Political Reporter
Presidential spokesman George Charamba has been publicly attacked by former Zanu PF MP Temba Mliswa, in a fiery exchange that lays bare deepening factional tensions and a propaganda war within the ruling party over President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s succession.
In a lengthy social media post, Mliswa, who has recently emerged as a vocal supporter of business magnate Kudakwashe Tagwirei’s political ambitions, launched an unprecedented broadside against Charamba. He accused the long-serving presidential aide of “betraying his principal” and sabotaging the president through a “lackadaisical and compromised approach” to his duties.
“The guy has a history of betraying his principals,” Mliswa wrote.
“His latest conduct as presidential spokesperson, when the president came under siege, has been very telling and speaks of a compromised character. His lack of passion and initiative is a wilful removal of those factors to sabotage the president.”
Mliswa further claimed that Charamba’s attempts to “act normal” while Mnangagwa faced internal attacks betrayed his true loyalties, even suggesting that exiled former minister Professor Jonathan Moyo was “doing a better job from a propaganda perspective advancing the presidential cause.”
Charamba responded with characteristic force, dismissing Mliswa as “a talkative nobody” and a “failed opposition figure” seeking relevance.
“I hardly have time for a failed opposition figure who seeks to play saviour to my principal or to Zanu PF which he is yet to re-join,” Charamba fumed.
“I will only take notice of his errant views when he becomes a member of Zanu PF or an MP after winning a seat in a free and fair contest. For now, he is a mere talkative nobody who has no lessons for me.”
The ferocity of the public clash underscores a widening communication and succession crisis within Zanu PF.
The tensions have escalated since the party’s recent Mutare conference, where Vice President Constantino Chiwenga delivered a speech widely interpreted as a subtle challenge to potential plans for Mnangagwa to extend his term.
Charamba’s public praise of Chiwenga’s Mutare speech as “excellent” and “amazing” is reported to have angered figures in the Tagwirei-aligned camp, who are wary of Chiwenga’s rising profile.
Insiders say Mliswa’s tirade was a clear signal of loyalty to the business-political faction that is openly lobbying for Mnangagwa to anoint Tagwirei as his preferred successor.
“The Tagwirei group sees Charamba as unreliable because he has maintained lines of communication with Chiwenga and other old-guard figures,” a senior party official told Zim GBC News.
“They think he’s too cautious and wants to survive whoever wins, instead of fighting for their man.”
The episode has also highlighted growing disarray in the government’s communication machinery, with Mliswa accusing both Charamba and information secretary Ndavaningi Mangwana of “false humility” and ineffectiveness in defending the president.
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