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Wilson Tarugarira Khumbula | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Zimbabwe House of Assembly for Chipinge North | |
| In office 1995 –2000 | |
| Preceded by | Gordon Mushakavanhu |
| Succeeded by | Messias Matewu |
| Member of the Zimbabwe House of Assembly for Chipinge South | |
| In office 2000 –2005 | |
| Preceded by | Ndabaningi Sithole |
| Succeeded by | Enock Porusingazi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 12,1937 Manicaland Province,Zimbabwe |
| Political party | ZANU-PF (2015—present) ZANU Ndonga (1960s—2015) |
| Residence(s) | Chipinge,Manicaland,Zimbabwe |
| Profession | Politician,businessman |
Wilson Khumbula,also known as Kujokochera, [1] is a Zimbabwean politician and businessman. [2] He is a former leader of the Zimbabwe African National Union - Ndonga (ZANU-Ndonga),and arguably dissolved the faction in 2015,2018,and 2021 to join ZANU-PF. [3] [4] [5] He was one of the early members of ZANU-Ndonga,which formed in 1963 under Ndabaningi Sithole. [3]
Khumbula is from Checheche Growth Point in the Chipinge South area of Manicaland,Zimbabwe. [2]
During the Rhodesian Bush War,Khumbula worked with Maurice Nyagumbo to recruit soldiers to fight for liberation. [3] He was arrested in 1975 and was sentenced to ten years at Harare Central Prison before being released in 1978 due to the signing of the Internal Settlement. [3] He was arrested again later that year and sentenced to six years at Chikurubi Prison until the Lancaster House Agreement in 1979. [3] At some point,he was also tortured and incarcerated at Hwahwa Prison in Gweru. [6] After the war,he remained active in ZANU-Ndonga alongside party leader Ndabaningi Sithole. [3]
In the 1995 Zimbabwean parliamentary election,Khumbula was elected as the Zimbabwe House of Assembly representative for Chipinge North alongside Ndonga leader Ndabaningi Sithole,who represented Chipinge South. [7] Ndonga was the only opposition party represented in the 1995 parliament. [7] Khumbula won the only House seat for Ndonga in the 2000 parliamentary election and subsequently ran for president in 2002,where he received less than 1% of the vote. [8] Khumbula lost his House seat in 2005 [7] and his bid in the 2013 election. [3] In 2018,he sought to represent Chipinge South as a member of ZANU-PF,but lost to Enock Porusingazi. [9] [1]
He supported ZANU–PF presidential candidate Simba Makoni in the 2008 Zimbabwean general election. [7]
Khumbula took over as president of ZANU-Ndonga following the death of Sithole in 2000. [6] [7] [3] In 2018,Denford Musiyariri claimed that Khumbula had been expelled from the party in 2005 and replaced with Rev. Dr. Fred J. Gomendo. [4] He was later reinstated and served as president until 2015,when he left to join ZANU-PF and Musiyariri himself took over as president. [10] [4] [11] [12] Musiyariri joined the MDC Alliance ahead of the 2018 election to oppose ZANU-PF. [13] As of 2021,Khumbula and Musiyariri are each referred to as the ZANU-Ndonga president across different sources. [14] [15]
Despite repeated assertions that he is not interested in joining a coalition, [3] [4] Khumbula has joined,un-joined,and rejoined ZANU-PF over the years,often declaring the move on behalf of the party;in 2015 and 2018,Khumbula called upon ZANU-Ndonga members to identify as and vote for ZANU-PF in the 2018 Zimbabwean general election. [6] [16] [10] Critics of Khumbula,particularly those within ZANU-Ndonga,have accused him of joining ZANU-PF for his own gain. [17] In April 2021,Khumbula and representatives from NPF,MDC-A,and MDC agreed to dissolve their political parties to join the ZANU-PF ahead of the 2023 Zimbabwean presidential election. [18] [19] ZANU-PF leader Patrick Chinamasa praised Khumbula for this action and said it helped unite the people of Chipinge. [14]
Khumbula owns Zineku Beerhall,which rivals another establishment owned by ZANU-PF MP Enock Porusingazi,in Checheche. [1] He uses the beerhall as a gathering place for ZANU-Ndonga supporters and strongly emphasizes the importance of Muchongoyo in bringing party members together. [1] He also owns or has owned a restaurant,two gas stations,Kujo Superstar Hotel and Casino,a night club,grinding mills,and a construction company focused on developing housing and shopping in rural Checheche. [2] He has a major financial hand in the Division Two football team the Zineku Stars. [20] Khumbula received the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015 for his work as a businessman in rural Checheche. [21]
One of his children,Kudakwashe Khumbula,is a politician representing the Zimbabwe Partnership for Prosperity. [22] His nephew is Enock Porusingazi,the ZANU-PF-aligned politician who defeated Khumbula twice for House seats. [23] [2]