MDC Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa has reportedly
buckled to pressure from disgruntled Bulawayo members and agreed to reconvene
the provincial congress to elect the structure’s leadership.
Mr Chamisa came under fire after he presided over a
“chaotic” provincial congress in Bulawayo with some party members accusing him
of manipulating the process to favour some candidates on the grounds of
ethnicity.
According to party insiders, the Bulawayo provincial
congress will be held after the party’s national congress to be held in Gweru
this week.
The sources said in order to cool rising temperatures in
the party, the losing candidates have been allowed to attend the congress.
“The national council met on Monday and received the
recommendations of the appeals committee that the congress should be done afresh
and those recommendations were adopted,” said a source.
The source said the province, after the national executive
council meeting, was contacting losing candidates and requesting their details
so that they are included as delegates to the congress.
“What will happen is that the top ten members of those who
won in the congress and the top ten of the losing candidates will all go to the
congress. Additionally the two groups will nominate 18 members each to attend
the congress,” said the source.
The source said after the national congress, Bulawayo
province is then expected to re-do their congress and elect the provincial
executive.
MDC Alliance provincial spokesperson Mr Swithern Chirowodza
yesterday said they had not received any communication or instruction to
register the losing candidates.
However, sources insisted that the party’s organising
secretary Mr Amos Chibaya actually gave the province an instruction to register
the losing candidates.
After the chaotic congress, losing Bulawayo provincial
executive aspirants took on Mr Chamisa head-on accusing him of manipulating
processes to achieve his desired outcome.
In a letter to the party’s national executive, 12 losing
candidates blamed Mr Chamisa and Mr Chibaya for the chaotic congress.
The losing candidates alleged that the interference by Mr
Chamisa and Mr Chibaya benefited Mr James Sithole’s camp. Mr Sithole was
elected provincial chairperson.
They further argued that the provincial congress was
illegal as it did not adhere to the party processes, conduct and procedures.
Last week, disgruntled MDC Alliance officials gave Mr
Chamisa a hostile reception to Bulawayo city by painting graffiti at the
party’s provincial offices denigrating him for alleged dictatorship and
tribalism.
Mr Chamisa was in the city for the party’s provincial
caucus where contestants vying for posts at the party’s scheduled congress were
presenting their manifestos.
Some of the messages written on the walls and gate to the
party provincial office include, “Chamisa ule nketha betshabi (Chamisa you are
tribalistic), “Chamisa usubulele i MDC” (Chamisa you have destroyed MDC),
“Chamisa a worse dictator”, “Chamisa uyadelela” (Chamisa you are disrespectful)
among other derogatory and inflammatory messages. Chronicle
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