HARARE – Zanu PF has dismissed claims by CCC leader Nelson Chamisa that the ruling party was sponsoring recalls on opposition legislators and councillors in attempts to both fan division and destroy his party.

This follows the shock ouster of 24 party legislators and 17 councillors under a dubious directive issued by Sengezo Tshabangu, who claims to be acting as CCC secretary general.

Tshabangu, a virtually unknown figure until his bombshell recall order recently, wrote to national assembly speaker Jacob Mudenda claiming the affected legislators had ceased to be CCC members.

A fuming Chamisa said Wednesday the enemy was sponsoring what he found as a bid to destroy CCC.

“Stay away from CCC, hands off CCC, this is a citizens movement; you don’t just wake up one day from the streets in a drunken stupor to say I’m so and so,” Chamisa said of Tshabangu.

“In this movement, we do not have the position of secretary general. We have different roles and tasks.

“In this movement, we don’t give each other positions but we give each other tasks.

“Nobody can just wake up and recall our candidates.

“In fact, it is a Zanu PF scheme … Zanu PF is using certain people purporting to be CCC, who are not even in our books in terms of membership registry.”

Responding to the opposition leader, Zanu PF acting Director for Information and Publicity Farai Marapira dismissed the claims saying Chamisa should stop dragging the ruling party’s name into the mire.

“Mr Chamisa has simply shown the depth of his ignorance on matters of statecraft,” Marapira said.

“Zanu PF is a political party within this country. We do not instate or remove legislators from the opposition from any position.

“Mr Chamisa should stop pontificating and stop doing so much rhetoric at the expense of the progression of his party and his supporters.

“Mr Chamisa should take full responsibility that he is below par leader and that this problem is emanating from his party are solely his own fault and he should stop involving Zanu PF in each and every malady that comes across his way.”

Marapira added, “We are not concerned with what he is going to do if he is going to remove his members that is his decision; we as Zanu PF it have nothing to do with us.

“So, for him to say that Zanu PF should reinstate people that have been removed by a letter from CCC is the absurdity of absurdities for this year.

“If any prizes are going to be given this year for the most disingenuous statement. I’m sure Mr Chamisa will be prize contender of these utterances he made.”