MDC-T secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora has been accused of plotting to rig his way to the opposition party’s presidency.
He is also facing allegations of trying to manipulate the
voters roll to be used at the extraordinary congress on December 19.
Mwonzora is hoping to edge party leader Thokozani Khupe at
the congress which was ordered by the Supreme Court in March this year.
Other candidates in the presidential race include
chairperson Morgen Komichi and his deputy Elias Mudzuri.
As the congress draws nearer, there are allegations that
candidates are plotting against each other and that tensions are high.
It is alleged that Khupe, Mudzuri and Komichi’s backers are
ganging up against Mwonzora whom they accuse of plotting to manipulate party
structures which form the electoral college.
Mwonzora is also accused of deploying some provincial
chairpersons to identify people to fill vacant positions in the 2014 structures
ordered by the court to conduct the congress.
The move was stopped at Wednesday’s caucus meeting where
Khupe reportedly flexed her muscle and ruled that no vacancies would be filled.
On Friday, a list of district executive members for Mutoko
South alleged to have been prepared by Mwonzora’s backers showed that of the 19
members listed, only seven were bona fide members of the 2014 structures.
The list has triggered a storm in the party, with claims
that manipulations had begun in Harare, Chitungwiza, Mashonaland East and West
provinces.
“Mwonzora has been using Piniel Denga, provincial chairman
for Mashonaland East, Lloyd Damba (provincial secretary of Chitungwiza and
Simon Hove, Harare provincial treasurer who is masquerading as provincial
chairman,” a party official who refused to be named because he is not
authorised to talk to the media, said.
Two weeks ago, Denga allegedly summoned all Mashonaland
East district chairpersons and ordered them to find three people for each wing
to be included in the structures that will form the electoral college.
“Mwonzora is trying even to falsify structures in Harare,
We know all people who remain in our structures. The rest went with Chamisa,”
the party official said.
“But we are watching him. We know all the people in our
structures and our secretary for elections, Mudzingwa Gandi is an honest man,
he has the true 2014 structures, so Mwonzora is going nowhere. He (Mwonzora)
claims his launch was oversubscribed with people, but all of them are not in
the structures, the majority are those who hated Tsvangirai and were fired and
are now back in his camp.
The official castigated the party’s failure to hold in
person national council meetings so that people could identify each other,
alleging a plot to manipulate the structures.
But Mwonzora denied that he was plotting to ambush his
opponents by manipulating the voters’ role. “This is the work of people who are
developing butterflies about this election. They are afraid of losing because
the members of the MDC-T have already shown their voting patterns.
“The electoral college to be used by congress is going to
be tabled before the national standing committee on Tuesday.
“It is at that point that the leaders will be able to
analyse it. Further, after we have finalised the electoral college on Tuesday,
we will send it back to the districts for further verification.
“Thereafter, the electoral college will be put in the hands
of an independent electoral commission,” Mwonzora said.
Acting MDC-T spokesperson Tapiwa Mashakada said the party
would use strict measures to ensure that bona fide members of the 2014
structures would vote. “Our election teams are compiling the roll and once
done, it will be taken back to all provinces for verification by members.
“The congress preparations are going on well,” he said.
Newsday
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