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Zanu-PF Endorses Gono's Nomination for Buhera Senate Seat


Zimbabwe's central bank Governor Gideon Gono gestures during a news conference at his office in Harare. (file photo)
Zimbabwe's central bank Governor Gideon Gono gestures during a news conference at his office in Harare. (file photo)
The Zanu-PF Politiburo has endorsed former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono's nomination for the Buhera senate seat to replace the late Kumbirai Kangai who died sometime this year.

Party spokesman Rugare Gumbo told VOA Studio 7 that party supporters overwhelmingly chose Gono as their sole candidate for the seat in a province won overwhelmingly by President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party in the disputed July 31st elections.

“Manicaland brought a recommendation on the strength of the Buhera district recommending Gono to become senator, taking over from the late Kangai. We discussed the issue and endorsed the decision of Manicaland,” said Gumbo.

He said the people of Buhera were happy about the former governor’s performance at the RBZ though he presided over historic hyperinflationary figures of up to 231 million percent which led to the collapse of the Zimbabwe dollar.

Gono, who served two-five year terms from 2003 to November 30 this year and is President Mugabe’s personal finance advisor, was not available for comment. The nation’s new constitution allows a party to nominate a person of its choice to fill vacant senatorial seats.

The country dumped the Zimbabwe dollar after the formation of the unity government in 2009 with the two Movement for Democratic Change formations led by Morgan Tsvangirai and Welshman Ncube.

Zanu-PF won resoundingly in the July elections being questioned by the West and the MDC parties who claim that the polls were rigged by Zanu-PF in conjunction an Israeli company, Nikuv.

At least 304,980 voters failed to cast their votes in unclear circumstances with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission saying the majority of those who were turned away did not produce the required documents such as valid passports or national identity cards.

The Commission also noted that more than 207,000 voters were assisted to vote as there was a high turnout of senior citizens in the general election. It said most of these people declared that they were illiterate.

Zimbabwe’s literacy rate is estimated to be more than 90 percent.
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