Harare — THE Unity Accord survived its sternest test ever on Monday when all but one of the ZANU-PF provinces that were still to select their preferred candidates to the presidium upheld a decision by the politburo to reserve the chairmanship of the party for the former PF-ZAPU to avert cracks that were threatening to further split the party.

The nomination of Didymus Mutasa, the party's secretary for administration, by Manicaland and Mashonaland Central provinces at the weekend had presented a harsh possibility to the former PF-ZAPU members, whereby the party's chairmanship would have eluded them for the first time since the Unity Accord was signed 22 years ago.

This had caused a lot of consternation among the former PF-ZAPU elements, with hardliners in their ranks threatening to join Dumiso Dabengwa, the former ZANU-PF politburo member, who is working tirelessly to revive ZAPU.

But on Monday night, provincial leaders from the three Mashonaland provinces and Harare held a crisis meeting in the capital where it was agreed to end the discord by backing Zimbabwe's ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya Moyo, for the post of national chairman.

Moyo -- a student of the late nationalist Joshua Nkomo through and through -- had secured nominations from the Matabeleland region and needed the support of at least three more provinces to secure the chairmanship.

The emergence of Mutasa had complicated matters in ZANU-PF. For the first time since the Unity Accord was signed in 1987, it had looked like the issue was going to be settled at the party's congress due next month.

But on Monday, Mashonaland Central province took the surprise decision of rescinding its decision to back Mutasa and threw its weight behind Moyo along with Harare, Mashonaland East and West, which have always voted as a block.

Co-Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi, whose name had been thrown into the ring by Masvingo province withdrew from the race in support of Moyo.

The Midlands province is yet to come up with its list of nominations, although speculation swirled yesterday that it would settle for Moyo as national chairman.

"Had Mutasa sailed through, it was going to be disastrous because those from PF-ZAPU had indicated that they would simply leave the party. Mutasa's nomination was not in the letter and spirit of the Unity Accord," said a ZANU-PF insider. Although the Unity Accord signed between ZANU-PF's President Robert Mugabe and PF-ZAPU's Nkomo (now late) in December 1987 explicitly states that one of the two vice-presidents should be from the former PF-ZAPU, it is silent on which party should occupy the post of national chairman.

It had however, become the norm that the post of national chairman went to members from the former PF-ZAPU as way of maintaining tribal balance in the presidium.

But some provinces this time around took advantage of the porosity of the agreement and selected for nomination, Mutasa to occupy the post.

Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, the ZANU-PF national secretary for education in the politburo had written a letter to the party's leadership complaining bitterly about attempts to circumvent the gentlemen's agreement that had existed since 1987 when the Accord was signed.

"The Provincial Coordinating Committee noted with dismay that Cde Mutasa should have known better that he was not former PF-ZAPU. The position of national chair, although not written in the Unity Accord, became former PF-ZAPU position by an unwritten agreement and by convention to balance the presidium representation of the former ZANU-PF and PF- ZAPU," wrote Ndlovu.

"Comrade RG Mugabe (President) and Comrade Muzenda (Vice President); represented former ZANU-PF; Comrade Joshua M Nkomo, Vice President and Comrade J. Msika national chairman, represented PF-ZAPU. The PF-ZAPU congress at the City Sports Centre in 1987 ratified this arrangement and this has been so all along. We strongly believe that the unity arrangements must not be tampered with."