HARARE – ZANU PF Harare Provincial Political Commissar, Cde Voyage Dambuza has launched a high-stakes nationwide cadre registration drive aimed at enrolling 600 000 party members ahead of the forthcoming National Cell Day, with preliminary figures showing 250 000 new registrations secured in just two weeks following an intensive provincial tour.
The drive follows a comprehensive province-wide audit that identified critical gaps in the party’s membership rolls. In response, Cde Dambuza has undertaken a relentless schedule, moving at speed across constituencies to ensure the ambitious target is met before the landmark national event.
“We are not here to play politics, we are here to build an unshakeable army for ZANU PF. The 600 000 target is non-negotiable,” declared Cde Dambuza.
The Commissar’s aggressive mobilisation comes as the party strengthens its grassroots structures, with Nation Cell Day positioned as the ultimate barometer of ZANU PF’s organisational prowess.
“Every cell must be a fortress. Every cadre must be counted. Victory belongs to the disciplined,” Cde Dambuza said.
With 350 000 registrations still outstanding, Cde Dambuza warned against any complacency, stressing that the remaining phase demands even greater urgency and focus.
“The audit showed us where we are weak. Now we turn those gaps into strongholds. No voter, no cadre will be left behind,” he said.
Political analysts observing the province note that Harare is fast becoming a showcase for ZANU PF’s revitalised mobilisation machinery, with Cde Dambuza leading from the front as the party intensifies its countdown to Nation Cell Day set for June 27.
“A victorious ZANU PF is not a wish, it is a plan. And that plan starts with numbers on the ground. We are delivering,” the Commissar said.
HARARE – ZANU PF Harare Provincial Chairman Cde Goodwills Masimirembwa has accused the Harare City Council of criminal negligence following the deaths of three people who drowned in an unguarded sewer pit in Budiriro 3, describing the tragedy as a direct consequence of the local authority’s failure to secure hazardous municipal works.
The three bodies – a young woman, a second man, and a young man whose fall was initially reported – were retrieved from a sewage pond in the high-density suburb after emergency services raced to the scene late Monday. The recovery operation, led by the police sub-aqua unit and the City of Harare Fire Brigade, concluded in the early hours of Tuesday following a gruelling night search in treacherous conditions.
Cde Masimirembwa, who visited the scene shortly after the bodies were recovered, expressed deep sorrow over what he termed a preventable catastrophe.
“Our hearts are shattered for the families who have lost their loved ones in this unimaginable tragedy,” Cde Masimirembwa said. “No family should have to endure such pain, and we stand with you in this darkest hour, praying for strength and comfort.”
But the provincial chairman quickly turned his ire on the municipality, alleging that the open excavation had been left exposed and unmarked for several months – a hazard that residents had repeatedly flagged to local leadership.
Cde Goodwills Masimirembwa8
“This is a clear case of criminal negligence by the Harare City Council,” Cde Masimirembwa charged. “How can a massive open pit be left unsecured in a residential area? The council has blood on its hands.”
He called for an urgent audit of all municipal work sites across the capital and demanded that officials found responsible be held to account without delay.
“These were precious lives of young people with dreams and futures. Their deaths did not have to happen,” he added.
In response, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume has ordered an urgent investigation into the incident, demanding a preliminary report within hours. Police have also launched an inquest, with detectives interviewing residents and council workers.
In a brief statement, the City of Harare extended its condolences to the families of the three deceased, describing the deaths as “tragic and deeply regrettable”. The council promised to cooperate fully with investigators.
However, residents of Budiriro 3 expressed outrage, saying they had warned the local authority on numerous occasions about the danger posed by the unfenced pit, which had filled with rainwater and sewage sludge.
“We told them someone would die here,” said one neighbour, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals. “They did nothing. Now three people are gone. It’s not an accident – it’s murder by neglect.”
Despite his sharp criticism of the council, Cde Masimirembwa took time to praise the emergency personnel who worked through the night under perilous conditions.
“I want to also extend my profound gratitude to the brave rescue teams,” he said. “The divers, the fire brigade, and the volunteers showed incredible courage working through the night under dangerous conditions to retrieve the victims, and we owe them our deepest thanks.”
The recovery effort was hampered by thick mud and poor visibility, with divers forced to search by touch alone. One firefighter was treated for exhaustion at the scene.
Cde Masimirembwa urged Government to step in and provide immediate burial assistance to the bereaved families, and to consider compensation for what he called “unlawful loss of life due to state-council negligence”.
“The families must not be left to bear the cost of this tragedy alone,” he said. “This council must be made an example. If we do not act decisively, how many more will die before we learn?”
The bodies have been taken to Harare’s central mortuary for post-mortem examinations. Family members were still being identified by police at the time of publication and formal identifications are expected later today.
This latest incident has reignited long-standing concerns over the collapse of infrastructure maintenance in Harare, where unmarked trenches, open manholes and exposed stormwater drains have claimed multiple lives in recent years. Critics say the city council has routinely ignored safety protocols, prioritising political turf wars over basic service delivery.
Harare-VACCILATING politician and Zanu PF returnee Shadreck Mashayamombe is in the eye of a storm.
The fickle politician has served as Zanu PF Harare South MP before defecting to MDC Alliance where he contested incumbent MP Hon Tongai Mnangagwa but lost in the 2018 .
This time, he has been accused of insubordination after allegedly flouting a provincial party directive by providing a venue and proceeding with a youth sports programme in Churu constituency on Saturday, a move that drew the attention of anti-riot police,Express Mail Zim can report.
The event, held at Mashayamombe’s Canterbury School, was billed as a belated Africa Day sports gala aimed at supporting sports infrastructure and grassroots development.
However, earlier in the week, Harare Provincial Chairman Cde Goodwills Masimirembwa issued a directive ordering all affiliate organisations to immediately suspend individual programmes and channel full resources into a massive grassroots mobilisation drive targeting over 600 000 party members ahead of National Cell Day Commemorations.
Despite the clear instruction, Mashayamombe did not lock his gates and allegedly gave a nod to organisers to proceed with the gathering, prompting police intervention to disperse attendees.
Party insiders noted that Mashayamombe and his crew could have simply applied for a waiver to the provincial leadership to be exempted and go ahead to host the sporting gala, rather than outrightly defying the party directive which is an act of insubordination.
“Well, one affiliate, ZimSports4ED, had a brilliant initiative which however coincided with preparations for the National Cell Day and the provincial party directive to halt all affiliates’ provincial programmes,” said a senior party official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The party law and directives need to be followed because they are reached after wide consultation with the national organ and relevant party authorities. So for you to then bless and play host providing venue to an illegal event is tantamount to breach of provincial party directives, which sows seeds of division in the party, and that cannot be tolerated.”
The official referred this reporter to Provincial Commissar Cde Voyager Dambuza or Vice Chairman Cde Ephraim Fundukwa for further comment. Both could not be reached at the time of writing, with Cde Dambuza passing the phone to someone who said he was driving to the funeral wake of the mother of Cde Masimirembwa and could not talk.
Mashayamombe’s phone went unanswered, but his close loyalists defended the decision to go ahead despite the ban.
“My friend, a lot of resources were pulled in preparing for this sports gala, and cdes from ZimSports4ED ran around seeking support from the corporate world. Two days before the event, you then get a directive to halt all this effort. We need to empathise with the children who were meant to participate,” said a Ushewokunze resident who identified himself only as Cde Tyson.
“More still, Shaddy (Mashayamombe) only provided his grounds at the school. How could he have locked his gates?”
Meanwhile, residents in Churu constituency said Mashayamombe was strategically plotting to regain his hold on Harare South constituents through social service provisions, including using his school as a tool.
