MDC Alliance president Nelson Chamisa has blamed defections from his party by MPs and councillors to poverty.
Some MDC Alliance members have defected to either the MDC-T
led by Douglas Mwonzora to avoid recalls, while others have rushed for carrots
dangled by the ruling Zanu PF party.
Chamisa said this yesterday during a social media
discussion with One South Africa (OSA) leader and former Democratic Alliance
(DA) leader Musi Maimane on Twitter.
He said it was sad that some leaders in his party had dumped
the democratic struggle to join Zanu PF and the MDC-T in search of wealth. He
said poverty had a negative effect on opposition political leaders.
“They (defectors) dump the people’s needs for cars and
personal gain. I am, however, glad that most of the leaders around me are solid
and committed to the cause of the people,” Chamisa tweeted.
Since last year, the MDC Alliance suffered a major blow
when Mwonzora recalled more than 40 MPs and 80 councillors aligned to Chamisa
despite that some of them were elected representatives.
Those that feared being recalled quickly aligned themselves
to the MDC-T, while others that were recalled like former Midlands senator
Lillian Timveous, who was also former MDC Alliance deputy treasurer joined Zanu
PF. Timveous has since been rewarded with a plum position on the PetroTrade
board.
“We must be in government to serve, not be served, we must
be in government to give, not to take,” Chamisa said.
Later, Chamisa told NewsDay that it was imperative for
political parties to choose their leaders wisely and select those committed to
the party from the grassroots.
“When one takes a leadership role, they are not doing it
for themselves. Therefore, they must be able to stand for the will of those
they lead regardless of their own interests. Those who want money, cars and
profits must join private companies or venture into business politics. It is
about the people and sacrifice,” he said.
Two weeks ago, President Emmerson Mnangagwa doled out
all-terrain vehicles to losers in the 2018 presidential election under his
Political Actors Dialogue. Several former MDC Alliance members, including James
Maridadi and Obert Gutu, have also been rewarded with top government posts.
Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment