Mnangagwa's nephew expelled from Zanu PF

by Staff reporter


Fresh cracks have emerged within ZANU-PF after President Emmerson Mnangagwa's nephew, Pearson Mbalekwa, was reportedly expelled from the ruling party amid growing tensions over controversial constitutional amendment manoeuvres linked to the "2030 agenda."

According to Nehanda Radio, Mbalekwa, a former Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) officer and long-time associate of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, fell out with influential party figures after repeatedly refusing to endorse slogans and political messaging aimed at extending Mnangagwa's stay in power beyond constitutionally prescribed limits.

The move is likely to fuel speculation about widening internal divisions within ZANU-PF as factions battle over succession politics and controversial attempts to reshape the country's constitutional order.

According to insiders, the disciplinary process that culminated in Mbalekwa's expulsion was spearheaded by Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, who also serves as the party's Secretary for Legal Affairs.

Party sources described the proceedings as little more than a scripted exercise intended to rubber-stamp a decision that had already been made behind closed doors.

A provincial disciplinary committee reportedly appointed by senior ZANU-PF figures July Moyo and Owen Ncube recommended that Mbalekwa be expelled for allegedly refusing to conform to the province's "ethos, principles, conduct and aspirations."

However, insiders said the real offence was his refusal to enthusiastically participate in chants promoting the increasingly controversial "2030 VaMnangagwa vanenge vachitonga" campaign.

The proceedings were chaired by Lewis Matutu, alongside committee members Maud Ngwenya, Cornelius Mupereri, Mazivazvose and Maxwell Mataranyika.

Sources further claimed that the expulsion has already received approval from the ZANU-PF Politburo, effectively sealing Mbalekwa's political fate within the ruling party.


The fallout is particularly striking given Mbalekwa's long-standing ties to Mnangagwa and Zimbabwe's security establishment.

During the liberation struggle period, he reportedly lived with Mnangagwa in Zambia and served in the Zambian military before returning to Zimbabwe after independence. He later joined the CIO when Mnangagwa headed the intelligence organisation and became involved in various regional security operations, including assignments linked to Zimbabwe's activities in Mozambique during the RENAMO conflict.

He also served at Zimbabwe's embassy in Kenya and is said to have played a role in encouraging RENAMO elements to embrace peace negotiations that eventually contributed to stability in Mozambique.

Despite his liberation war-era credentials and decades of loyalty to the establishment, Mbalekwa's political career has repeatedly collided with ZANU-PF's intolerance for dissent.

He previously served as a ZANU-PF Member of Parliament before being expelled during the final years of former President Robert Mugabe after openly urging Mugabe to step aside.

Following that fallout, Mbalekwa briefly aligned himself with the opposition and later worked as a security adviser to late MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai before returning to ZANU-PF after Mnangagwa's rise to power in 2017.

Upon his return, he was appointed head of investigations in the Special Anti-Corruption Unit operating under the Office of the President. However, sources said he later resigned in frustration over what he allegedly viewed as selective application of anti-corruption laws and political shielding of favoured individuals.

Political observers say his latest expulsion highlights growing unease within sections of the ruling party over the aggressive push to normalise the "2030 agenda," which critics argue undermines constitutionalism and entrenches personality cult politics.

The saga also exposes the increasingly unforgiving climate inside ZANU-PF, where even liberation war veterans, former intelligence operatives and relatives of the President himself appear vulnerable if they fail to publicly conform to the ruling faction's political script.