Zimbabwe African People's Union – Federal Party

The Zimbabwe African People's Union – Federal Party is a minor Zimbabwean political party, based in Matabeleland. ZAPU-FP split from Agrippa Madlela's ZAPU party, purportedly a revival of those members of ZAPU who had rejected the 1987 merger with ZANU-PF [1][2] in January 2002, following ZAPU's decision not to contest the Zimbabwean presidential election, 2002 [3] and amidst accusations that ZAPU-FP founder Paul Siwela had accepted payments from ZANU-PF to run in the election and thereby split the anti-Mugabe vote in Matabeleland.[4]

ZAPU-FP has a federalist, Matabeleland-centric ideology similar to that of PUMA. Paul Siwela was expelled from the leadership of the party in January 2008 due to initiating unauthorised talks with PUMA with a view to forming an electoral coalition in the Zimbabwean elections of 2008.[5] Secretary general Sikhumbuzo Dube claimed the role of acting president of ZAPU-FP in his stead and Siwela ultimately stood unsuccessfully for election as a candidate for the Federal Democratic Union.

The party contested the Zimbabwean parliamentary election, 2005 for the Zimbabwean Senate, gaining 213 votes (0.03%) [6] contested the Zimbabwean House of Assembly in the Zimbabwean parliamentary election, 2008 in Nketa, gaining 195 votes [7] and the Senate election in Gwabalanda (Bulawayo), gaining 734 votes.[8] ZAPU-FP has participated in the National Constitutional Assembly's effort at drawing up a new home-grown constitution for Zimbabwe with its current president Sikhumbuzo Dube having been the chairperson of NCA's Political Parties Liaison committee and serving as national Taskforce member. ZAPU-FP also participated in the outreaches for collection of data and in the crafting of the current Zimbabwe constitution which came into force in 2013. ZAPU-FP advocates for the federation of Zimbabwe into five provinces/states of Mashonaland, Manyikaland, Masvingo, Matabeleland and Midlands to which executive, judicial and legislative authority is devolved and constitutionally guaranteed to ensure equitable distribution of political power as well as economic resources.

Along with three other minor opposition parties, ZAPU-FP is a member of the Zimbabwe Organisation of Opposition Political Parties.[9]