FORMER Energy minister Elton Mangoma still vividly
remembers the events of February 16 2014 when he was bludgeoned by people he
believed were his comrades at MDC-T’s Harvest House headquarters.
The then MDC-T deputy treasurer general had been invited by
party leader Morgan Tsvangirai to try and avert another split.
Tsvangirai who had just lost a disputed election against
President Robert Mugabe. Mangoma and then MDC-T secretary general Tendai Biti
were at loggerheads with the former Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unionist as they
wanted him to step down for failing to dislodge Mugabe.
A fortnight ago, MDC-T vice-president Thokozani Khupe,
chairperson Lovemore Moyo and deputy secretary general Abedinico were assaulted
by party youths in Bulawayo for allegedly boycotting the signing ceremony for
the MDC Alliance. Mangoma recounted his ordeal in detail, drawing parallels
with developments in the country’s biggest opposition party today.
“You will remember I had written a letter detailing the
president [Tsvangirai]’s shortcomings and the remedies thereof,” he said.
“I was invited to Harvest House [MDC-T headquarters] for
talks.
“After discussions, which really did not take us anywhere,
Tsvangirai offered to escort me outside because we knew youths were baying for
my blood.
“But as we walked out, he dropped back and left me at the
mercy of those thugs. The rest as they say, is history.”
As he reflected on his time in the MDC-T, Mangoma said the
attack against Khupe, Moyo and Bhebhe was a manifestation of a cancer that has
afflicted the party for a long time.
He said violence had become a culture in the MDC-T as it
was in Zanu PF.
“It is sad that violence is as much a fabric of the MDC-T
as it is of Zanu PF,” he said. “We had been fighting to get rid of the cancer but then we
realised this culture was being nursed from the top.
“No action was taken against my assailants. If anything,
[secretary general] Douglas Mwonzora became a legend, defending the same
people.
“Violence is actually encouraged, that is why even in my
position as deputy treasurer general I never got sight of the [Trust)]Maanda
report.
“It was pointing in the wrong direction,” said Mangoma who
now leads the opposition Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe.
An April 15 2011 memorandum by the MDC-T’s then secretary
for welfare Kerry Kay said violent tendencies had taken root in the party.
“The ward, district and provincial elections throughout the
country, leading up to the third MDC national congress has been fraught with
violence.
“This is not a new phenomenon in the party and has
attracted widespread media interest and coverage,” Kay said, adding
perpetrators had walked away scot-free.
However, MDC-T spokesperson Obert Gutu said Tsvangirai
abhorred violence and would take action against those that were behind the
violence in Bulawayo.
“The investigation is going on very well and it has been thorough.
We trust that once the president has the report, action will be taken and heads
will definitely roll,” he said.
“Tsvangirai is a super democrat. He abhors violence and
people have actually taken advantage of his democratic nature.”
Tsvangirai immediately suspended deputy spokesperson
Tabitha Khumalo and deputy treasurer general Charlton Hwende as well as members
of the youth assembly who were allegedly linked to the violence.
Gutu rejected assertions that the MDC-T had
institutionalised violence.
“We are a social democratic party that fervently advocates
for the establishment of a peaceful, progressive and tolerant new Zimbabwe,” he
said.
“We are taking very stern measures against any violent
elements within the party.
“Trust me, nothing will be swept under the carpet,” said
Gutu, threatening expulsion of the malcontents.
Hwende said he had accepted his suspension and would help
in the investigation, dismissing claims that he had a hand in the attack.
Other victims of intra-party violence in the MDC-T since
the party was formed at the turn of the century include Priscilla
Misihairabwi-Mushonga and Trudy Stevenson, Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Senegal.
Political analyst and human rights activist Dewa Mavhinga
said political violence was endemic in Zimbabwean politics, and the vice had
crept into the opposition including the MDC-T.
“Impunity, when authorities fail to punish those who commit
violence, is the biggest problem because it encourages repeat offenders,
leading to vicious cycles of violence,” he said.
“The MDC-T should avoid this, and one hopes their internal
disciplinary procedures will result in clear public punishment for those who
participated in the violence and those who sponsored it.”
South Africa-based academic Ricky Mukonza said MDC-T had
developed “violent” concepts that did not augur well for democratic
institutions.
“Concepts such as kusvuura [skinning] and matatya [frogs]
have found their way in the political lingo of party activists when dealing
with rivals,” he said.
“However, it would be too harsh to describe MDC-T as
inherently violent but what is true is that the leadership of the party has
treated perpetrators of violence with kid-gloves.
“This has given the impression that the party tacitly
approves of violence.”
Zanu PF has resorted to extreme political violence when it
is cornered and Mugabe sometimes boasts that he has many degrees in violence.
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