Harare — PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe has met Simba Makoni in connection with the former finance minister's alleged links to a group within ZANU-PF campaigning for new leadership, as he began taking steps to crush an internal rebellion threatening his hold on the party.

The meeting was held on Monday afternoon at State House, President Mugabe's official residence.

The possibility of a breakaway from the ruling party, first reported by The Financial Gazette, has sparked panic and political gamesmanship within the ruling party and generated intense public interest.

George Charamba, spokesman for President Mugabe, confirmed yesterday a meeting had taken place between the two men.

"I cannot confirm over what issue they met, but I can confirm that they met. Dr. Makoni is a member of the Politburo, he is a member of ZANU-PF, and President Mugabe is his President. Such meetings are not unusual," Charamba said.

Reports have linked Makoni to a splinter group within ZANU-PF pushing for President Mugabe's ouster -- a month after the veteran nationalist secured the party's backing at its extraordinary congress as ZANU-PF's presidential candidate in the tricky March polls.

But even amid feverish speculation over his ambitions, the former Southern African Development Community (SADC) executive secretary, who attained high office in President Mugabe's government at a young age, has remained silent.

However, on Monday, for the first time since the speculation began, Makoni met the President. The meeting lasted two hours, sources said.

Makoni, according to sources, believes he had nothing to apologise for as "he had not been approached by anyone, neither had he himself approached anybody" on the matter.

"To emphasise he had no interest in challenging for the presidency, Makoni gave details of private consultancy work he will be doing for clients outside the country that will make him unavailable over the elections period," the source said.

Makoni is seen as one of the young turks in ZANU-PF likely to succeed President Mugabe, now in the twilight of his political career. He joined President Mugabe's government as deputy agriculture minister at the age of 30.

He became the country's energy minister four years later and held the youth portfolio thereafter. He abruptly left Cabinet only to emerge at SADC as the regional grouping's executive secretary.

Following his exit from SADC, Makoni has held several top positions in both government and the private sector.

Makoni's meeting with President Mugabe came as fear reigned supreme among reformists within ZANU-PF who are beginning to dissociate themselves from the splinter group.

President Mugabe has already begun acting against the rebels, sacking from ZANU-PF Kudzai Mbudzi, who had already been suspended from the party for his public opposition of war-veterans-led marches last month in support of the Zimbabwean leader's candidacy.

Speaking to The Financial Gazette last week, Mbudzi downplayed suggestions of a new party, saying what was on the cards was a push for reform from within ZANU-PF.

"If you are on a bus, and you have a problem with the driver, you do not abandon the journey, or the bus. You do not abandon the mission. What you do is simply change the driver," Mbudzi said.

Promoters of the initiative have also failed in their bid to secure the backing of Strive Masiyiwa, founder of Econet Wireless, the country's largest telecommunications company.

A close associate of Masiyiwa has revealed to this paper how an emissary of the group had made overtures to Masiyiwa, who is based in Johannesburg, from where he leads Econet's international operations.

"Yes, I can confirm that I was approached to act as a go-between for dialogue to take place. I told the people who approached me that Masiyiwa would not even agree to talk. They insisted that I at least try, which I did, and I got a flat 'No'," said Norman Nyazema, founding chairman of Econet.

But even as the project appeared to stumble, a separate dimension to internal ZANU-PF factionalism was emerging in Matabeleland.

A document has been circulated among politicians in both ZANU-PF and the MDC in Bulawayo, purporting to weigh options available for those campaigning for new leadership for the ruling party.

The document links Dumiso Dabengwa, a politburo member who was a senior figure in PF ZAPU, as a potential leader of a splinter group. Dabengwa was unavailable yesterday when The Financial Gazette sought comment. His office said he was locked up in meetings.

The document says only a united front had the chance to dislodge President Mugabe, but acknowledges how difficult this would be.

"The logistics of organising and running such a mammoth election will be daunting, while opportunities for (President) Mugabe to use his incumbency to manipulate the process on administrative and technical grounds will be immense," the document says.

While a boycott would be "desirable to discredit a sham election", it says, it would be difficult to persuade all opposition groups to shun the polls.

"To be successful, a boycott of the 2008 elections would have to be by all and not just by some of the progressive, democratic and patriotic forces in the opposition," the document says.

A united front, it said, therefore remained the only viable option.

The report says consultations and a "report back" on the united front should be completed by the end of this month. The outfit and its candidates would be revealed on February 18, the document says.

Herald columnist Nathaniel Manheru (a nom de plume widely believed to be that of President Mugabe's chief spokesman) has conceded the groundwork by those behind moves against the ageing Zimbabwean leader had been laid. Writing recently, Manheru said they had in their corner figures that "do hold positions in both the party and government", and a "contingent of ex-servicemen...high officers of the ruling party, including some controlling provinces and with business interests".

The group also included "Politburo members who are convening unilateral meetings" and stirring up opposition to President Mugabe's leadership," he said.

To root out the influence of the rebels ahead of the March elections, President Mugabe is considering dissolving most local structures in the "affected areas", a ZANU-PF official said.

However, as of this week, meetings were still being held in the provinces to persuade ZANU-PF's grassroots to back the proposal. At one such meeting in Masvingo last weekend, a retired senior army officer who is also a member of the Politburo, held meetings with local party leaders throughout the province.