DAYS before its internal candidate selection process roared
into life, the opposition MDC-T was last Friday thrown into turmoil after one
of its long-serving MPs Jessie Majome pulled out of the impending party primary
elections citing blatant disregard for party rules. In this interview with
NewsDay Senior Reporter Richard Chidza (ND), Majome (JM) declares she has shut
the door on the party’s ticket and is pondering her next move before the
elections. Below are excerpts:
ND: In your notice of withdrawal, you accused the party of
not following procedure. Could you please explain?
JM: One of my concerns is the uncertainty around the
procedures for the primary elections. It is said any member with a particular
plastic card was allowed to vote. The problem arose that it’s not certain who
is supposed to vote for an aspiring candidate. The party has not indicated how
it will ensure that only people in a particular area will vote. We had people
bussed into Harare West to shore up support in the constituency for a
particular aspiring candidate. The communication has not been that good.
I fear that if people can be bussed for a constituency
meeting, this is likely to recur during the primaries. Harare West has people
who traditionally do not participate in party activities, but will vote in the
elections proper and there has not been much communication to the people. I
have, as a sitting MP, been working in Zanu PF strongholds, which time I should
have invested in Harare West.
The people here needed time to be converted to invest their
time in the internal party processes. I was in Mt Darwin and recently in Zaka
mobilising support for the party, but all of a sudden, the party decided all
constituencies were going to be contested and there is no time to talk to
people. I am sure the party could have done better. It is unfair to have asked
us to go out and shore up support in other constituencies, and while out, there
would be contestants campaigning in our areas. We have been all over the place,
but are now expected to be contested. There was also a change of the kind of
card that is supposed to be used after people used their money to paper cards
only accessible to a select few.
ND: Did former President Morgan Tsvangirai promise to
protect sitting MPs?
JM: Precisely, that is what he said. He summoned the party
caucus and told us that it would be a waste of energies for the party to fight
over only 34 constituencies that we already hold. So we were asked to go out
and shore up support in areas deemed to be Zanu PF strongholds to help the
incoming candidates garner support. Even the current president (Nelson
Chamisa), early in his tenure, he said the same and sent us out to campaign in
other areas that are considered. So I realised now that I do not have the time.
As a middle-class constituency, Harare West would need time to explain to its
people that they are supposed to participate actively in party processes. Now
we are just weeks before an election and it is impossible to do that.
ND: There are reports that your problems stem from an
unwillingness to accept Chamisa as party leader following Tsvangirai’s death.
How true is this?
JM: That is news to me. I would be happy to get details
from the people who are bringing this narrative. I strangely don’t know where
my problems are coming from and I am willing to know. I am a member of the
national executive and he (Chamisa) is my president. I am a human rights lawyer
and defender, so I respect him, first, as a human being and secondly, as the
leader of my party.
ND: Are you going to stand as an independent?
JM: What I have done is to withdraw my candidature from the
party primary elections. I have several options, but I am not intending to join
anybody. However, as a citizen of Zimbabwe, I am considering and looking at
what it is that I want to do. I still want to contribute to Harare West.
I just thought I should let things go for now and think
clearly about my next move. I will advise my constituents because everything I
do is in their behalf. When I make the decision and I will do so before the
coming elections, I will communicate this publicly.
ND: Have you had access to the register of voters or party
membership register for your constituency?
JM: No! I haven’t and in my letter to the party
secretary-general (Douglas Mwonzora), I argued that there are some people who
have access to information regarding the primaries, while others do not have.
If there is a voters’ roll that the party has compiled, I would want to see it,
so I can approach those people who are eligible to vote and campaign properly.
As a potential candidate, I do not have.
My opponents have access to the new cards as well as the
membership register. I am curious to know when the voters’ roll was compiled.
As of Friday, when I decided to withdraw, I did not have this information and I
was worried that my opponents had access to it and they would have an unfair
advantage.
ND: Do you think there is a third hand behind your
political problems?
JM: I am not sure and I don’t know. I think it’s also
important that in terms of the criteria, we are clear to reduce the chances of
people feeling cheated. I have five concerns that I raised with the party.
The first being the blatant disregard for the criteria for
who is a candidate. There is a qualification in terms of the criteria set by
the party, only people who have been members of the party for five years can
contest. To the best of my knowledge, my major opponent does not meet this
criteria. The second is the issue of bending rules in order to accommodate her
(Joana Mamombe). Then there is the issue of seniority, which should have worked
to my advantage. But to my shock, my seniority has now been used against me. I
understand she has written a letter of complaint to the party, arguing that if
the seniority criterion is used, it would disadvantage her. I am a member of
the national executive and nominated by Mashonaland Central, now I have been
told to go to that province, where I actually do not live.
There is also the issue of shifting parameters around the
voters’ roll, who is going to vote or who is not eligible, the whole thing is
not transparent. We also have a problem with clear dishonesty by my opponent.
My contestant does not reside in Harare West, but I have been made to
understand that she used an address where she does not live, in the process
deceiving the party. I think that’s dishonesty and the party has accepted this.
The chairperson of one of the two wards in Harare West, who is opposed to my
candidature, now claims he does not know me and I am not known. He would hold
his meetings at my house and now claims he does not know me. I am a member of
the national executive and I find that preposterous that someone, who has been
holding meetings at my house, now claims not to know me. There is blatant
disregard of every rule that is meant to be used to manage this election
ND: Would you say you are scared of competition?
JM: I am a member of this party. It has a constitution and
very clear rules and procedures for its internal process including primary
elections. I abide by rules, but my problem is they have not been followed to
the letter and spirit.
I must qualify and whoever is competing with me should also
qualify in the same way as me. I would be ready to contest anyone who qualifies
to contest with me. There is not even competition to talk about because this
particular contestant does not qualify to be an aspiring candidate for the
party.
ND: Do you think there is an inherent problem within the
MDC-T of not sticking to procedure or your case is isolated?
JM: I haven’t conducted any survey because I am concerned
about my constituency. I know there is an utter disregard for rules of how we
should conduct elections. I am dealing with my constituency. I would implore
the party to deal with these issues and run the elections in a manner that we
have set. If we do not want the rules, let’s change them, but let’s follow what
we would have set.
ND: Has the party responded?
JM: I delivered the letter on Friday and have not received
any response. I made a decision and my letter was clear.
ND: Would you be willing to go back if your concerns are
addressed?
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