Former youth leader Godfrey Tsenengamu is retracing his footsteps to ZANU-PF, applying for readmission into the ruling party five years after his expulsion.

Tsenengamu was expelled from ZANU-PF in 2020 for his "wayward behaviour" after he called out senior party leaders involved in corruption.

The outspoken politician, together with Lewis Matutu, named controversial businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei as part of a corrupt cartel that was sabotaging the economy at the time.

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Interestingly, Tagwirei, who was at the centre of Tsenengamu's criticism, has risen within the ZANU PF ranks, securing a seat in the influential Central Committee.

Tsenengamu said he never willingly left ZANU PF.

"Remember, I have always been a ZANU PF person except for the moments I was expelled from the Party. I have never volunteered to come out of ZANU PF of my own will, and that must tell everyone concerned why I am seeking to go back to ZANU PF.

"I have always believed in this party, its ideology and its aims and objectives," Tsenengamu told NewZimbabwe.com.

Outside ZANU-PF, Tsenengamu formed his own party, the Front for Economic Emancipation in Zimbabwe (FEEZ), as he sought to challenge the ruling party.

Ahead of the 2023 election, Tsenengamu and his party backed former ZANU-PF Commissar Saviour Kasukuwere, with the latter being subsequently ejected from the presidential race.

The firebrand politician has never held back in his criticism of ZANU PF officials who have been implicated in corruption.

Tsenengamu says his seeking readmission is not a stamp of approval for certain operations within ZANU PF.

"By seeking to rejoin ZANU PF, that does not mean that I agree to everything everyone does within the party, but there is no point in giving up on the organisation you also worked to grow. Differences will always be there even in institutions like families and churches, and ZANU PF is no exception," he said.