ZANU PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa has accused Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga of exploiting the ruling party’s annual conference to advance what he described as a “dictatorial aspiration for political power”, escalating tensions between the two leaders following the deputy president’s stinging criticism of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s leadership.

Mutsvangwa dismissed Chiwenga’s address as a failed political manoeuvre, arguing that the Vice-President had abused the protocol privilege of introducing Mnangagwa to the gathering to air grievances and pursue his own presidential ambitions.

In remarks to the NewsHawks, Mutsvangwa said Chiwenga had failed to attract support for his intervention, which he portrayed as an attempt to undermine the President rather than contribute to the conference’s deliberations.

“Ah... that one (Chiwenga) ... he opportunistically abused the granted privilege to introduce H.E. (Mnangagwa) as guest of honour. His dissonant welter of ‘wrongs’ was brushed aside,” Mutsvangwa said.

“He laboured in vain much like a loose bolt in a car engine. He remained thereafter hoping for follow up support. None came. He was just shrugged off. No political harvest at all for unrequited political ambition.”

He added that Mnangagwa’s economic agenda had overshadowed what he characterised as Chiwenga’s self-serving political ambitions.

“The EDM bus of economic deliverables through Vision 2030 and Prospect of Middle Income Nation Prosperity rolled over his self-centred and furtive pursuit of dictatorial aspiration for political power,” Mutsvangwa said.

The exchange followed Chiwenga’s politically charged address to the ZANU PF conference, in which he questioned whether the ruling party was repeating the mistakes that led to the 2017 military-assisted transition that removed former president Robert Mugabe from power.

Using his platform to introduce Mnangagwa, Chiwenga challenged party leaders to reflect on the circumstances that gave birth to the Second Republic and whether its original promises were being undermined by the conduct of those now in power.

“The Second Republic came about to correct the mistakes of the past. Are we not repeating the same mistakes?” Chiwenga asked.

He called for a “brutal and honest self-appraisal”, raising concerns about how party decisions are made and whether resolutions presented at conferences genuinely reflect the wishes of ordinary members or are imposed by a powerful minority at the top.

Chiwenga also stressed that ZANU PF belonged to its members rather than individual leaders, describing those in positions of authority as temporary custodians of the party.

His warning against “mazvake mazvake”, a Shona expression referring to individualistic and self-serving conduct, reinforced his argument that the party risked losing its collective purpose when political power became concentrated in the hands of a few.

“Mazvake mazvake haana kwaanotisvitsa,” he said, warning that such an approach would not take the party forward.

The remarks have sharpened scrutiny of the widening divisions within ZANU PF, where disagreements over governance, party direction and the succession question are increasingly playing out in public.

Although Chiwenga did not directly name Mnangagwa as the target of his criticism, the timing and setting of his intervention placed the President’s leadership and the record of the Second Republic at the centre of his message.

Mutsvangwa, however, interpreted the address as a calculated attempt to use an official party function to advance Chiwenga’s political interests. His response also sought to frame the confrontation as a choice between Mnangagwa’s economic programme and what he portrayed as his deputy’s personal quest for power.