INFIGHTING has erupted in the MDC-T led by Thokozani Khupe
a few months after the faction found new life following a Supreme Court ruling
that reinstated the former deputy prime minister as leader of the party founded
by Morgan Tsvangirai.
Khupe’s party is preparing for its July 31 congress where a
substantive leader for the party will be elected.
The former Makokoba MP is likely to face acting
secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora, acting chairman Morgen Komichi, former
Harare mayor Elias Mudzuri and ex-legislator Gift Chimanikire in the contest
for the party’s top leadership position.
Three camps have since emerged in the party with two
supporting either Mwonzora or Khupe for the presidency while another wants MDC
Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa to be roped in.
Khupe and Mwonzora, have however, emerged as the major
contenders so far.
The intense jockeying has divided the party and the
divisions came to the fore recently when Khupe and Mwonzora clashed over the
recall of MDC Alliance senators.
Khupe last week recalled eight MDC Alliance senators for
refusing to ditch Chamisa, bringing the number of legislators that have lost
their seats due to the infighting to 21.
A few days later Mwonzora wrote to the party’s national
council accusing it of providing him with false information that led to the
recalling of Matabeleland North senator Phyllis Ndlovu.
He indicated that he would be reversing the recall.
“The national standing committee ordered me to file a
notice of recall of various members of Senate,” Mwonzora said in the letter
obtained by The Standard.
“I duly submitted the list to the Senate.
“Unfortunately regarding senator Phyllis Ndlovu there was
certain information that was not brought to my attention.
“A crucial procedure had been omitted regarding her
recall.”
Mwonzora’s backers now accuse Khupe of using the recalls to
settle personal scores.
They cited the expulsion of Bulawayo senator Gideon Shoko,
who has a child with Khupe, and former proportional representation MP Thabita
Khumalo.
Khupe, Shoko and Khumalo are said to have personal
differences that started during their time at the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade
Unions.
“Khupe is wreaking havoc in Matabeleland and there is no
stopping her, the vengeance is a ruthless objective, which has left Mwonzora in
a Catch-22 situation,” said a source.
“Either way, he is damned. If he recalls more legislators,
his image is soiled; and if he refuses to act on Khupe’s orders, he might face
disciplinary action.”
Khupe has also positioned her allies in strategic positions
to checkmate Mwonzora, the insiders said.
The former deputy prime minister brought in Khaliphani
Phugeni as the party’s deputy spokesperson, while her long-time ally Chief
Ndlovu was coopted into the standing committee.
“Khupe is replacing people who remained with the party with
those she was with when she formed a new party,” said a senior MDC-T official.
“Her allies have been given top positions in the party. It is cruel and careless.”
Mwonzora’s supporters, including one Fungai Chiposi who
lost in MDC Alliance primary elections for a Harare council seat, have been
openly campaigning for him on social media for the party’s presidency.
The Manicaland senator has declared his interest in the top
position.
“It is up to the delegates who are supposed to do a
nomination, then after that a normal election,” Mwonzora said.
“If they are to give me honour, I will be able to serve in
that office, it is because I have always been fighting for democracy.”
Abedingo Bhebhe, the party’s organising secretary, warned
that the recalling of legislators could derail the MDC-T congress.
Bhebhe told the latest MDC-T standing committee meeting
that over 2 000 delegates eligible to vote at the congress were backing
Chamisa.
He said the ongoing purges could make it difficult for the
congress to get a quorum.
It is believed that some of Khupe’s backers now even
believe that they are better off working with Chamisa than Mwonzora, whom they
accuse of using Machiavellian tactics to position himself ahead of the
congress.
The group is said to be pushing for dialogue with the MDC
Alliance leader, who has so far refused to take part in the MDC-T processes.
MDC-T claims there are 1 050 delegates aligned to Chamisa
who are plotting to disrupt the congress and plans are afoot to block them from
attending the event.
Khupe’s backers accuse Mwonzora of recruiting 15 people
that are stationed at Harvest House to allegedly manipulate records for
delegates that will vote at the congress.
“We have about 15 men in the building and most of them have
never gone out since we took over our headquarters,” a senior party official
claimed.
“There was an incident recently when one of our senior
officials walked into a room where two of the unidentified men panicked and
immediately shut down their machines, hiding whatever they were working on.”
The official added: “This has raised suspicions within the
party about the real identity of these men. The strongest suspicion is that there is someone controlling
them.”
Phugeni, however, said he was not aware of the 15 people or
their mission at the party headquarters.
“The accusation is grave if it is to be proven,” he said. There are a lot of young people doing a lot of security
work there, as you know, because of the contestations.
“The court has since resolved that matter, but you have to
know that a lot of young people are strategically stationed there.”
Khupe’s group was accused of seizing the party headquarters
in Harare with the help of the military last month.
Phungeni also refuted allegations of divisions between
Khupe and Mwonzora triggered by the recalling of MDC Alliance legislators.
“The party does the recalls, not individuals, and,
therefore, it is unfair and untrue that the acting president is targeting
anyone,” he said.
“The other issue of bringing our children into our
political discourse is a new low, which I wouldn’t dignify with a comment,”
Phugeni added, referring to Shoko and Khupe.
He said there were people that were trying to tarnish
Mwonzora’s image by potraying him as a violent and power-hungry politician.
Fadzayi Mahere, the MDC Alliance spokesperson, said her
party had nothing to do with the alleged divisions in Khupe’s faction.
“The recalls of MDC Alliance senators, proportional
representation legislators, constituency MPs and councillors are unlawful,
irregular and criminal,” Mahere said.
“It is a desperate act of showboating by Zanu PF and
Mwonzora designed to distract attention from the national crisis and entrench a
one-party state.
“It has nothing to do with improving the lives of the
people and everything to do with their personal political ambitions.
“The MDC Alliance remains focused on fighting for better
livelihoods for Zimbabweans who are suffering at the hands of a looting,
corrupt government.”
Chamisa mantains that Khupe and Mwonzora are backed by Zanu
PF to destabilise the opposition, an accusation the two have dismissed as
untrue. Standard
0 comments:
Post a Comment