“There is no one who touches Gono without provoking us" Zanu PF chief negotiator,Mr Patrick Chinamasa was quoted as having told mourners at the burial of one of Mr Gonos brothers by the state media on Wednesday.
“Anyone who wants to remove Gono must remove us first and those who keep on calling for him to go are saying Zanu PF must go too.”
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) last week referred the dispute to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU) the guarantors of the September 15 power sharing agreement for arbitration.
The MDC wants the central bank chief to be removed from his post for contributing to the country’s economic meltdown by excessively printing money to support quasi-fiscal activities.
The unrestrained printing of money saw Zimbabwe inflation reaching a world record of more than 231 million percent and the suspension of the local currency from circulation.
But Mugabe has defended the policies saying they were necessary for the country to survive sanctions and international isolation.
Mr Chinamasa, who was the acting minister of finance before the formation of the unity government on February 13, said all the central banks policies were approved by previous administrations.
The war of words over Dr Gono’s tenure, which analysts say exposes the fault lines in the inclusive government, has also drawn in the country’s service chiefs who vowed to protect him from his enemies.
SADC chairman and South African president Mr Jacob Zuma is yet to respond to calls for the regional body to intervene in the crisis over Dr Gono and Mr Tomana appointments.
Analysts say the bad blood between Dr Gono and Finance minister Mr Tendai Biti, also MDC secretary general, is hurting efforts to mobilise donors and investors.
Influential Western donors including the World Bank have revealed that money meant for humanitarian aid and reconstruction was bypassing the government because of concerns that the coalition has not demonstrated that it can manage the economy with prudence and transparency.
