CHAMISA MUM ON FRESH BYO POLLS

MDC Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa has riled disgruntled members from Bulawayo who lost in the chaotic provincial congress in April ahead of the party’s congress in May by reneging on a resolution to hold fresh polls.

According to insiders, before the holding of the congress in Gweru, the party had resolved that Bulawayo would hold a fresh provincial congress to select members of the executive.

This followed protests that Mr Chamisa had in April presided over a chaotic provincial congress whose outcome, members allege, was manipulated by the MDC Alliance leader to push a tribal agenda.

The disgruntled members wrote to the party accusing Mr Chamisa of interfering with processes.

The party’s national executive council then resolved that after the congress, the province would be dissolved to make way for fresh elections.

However, party sources said the party has gone quiet on the matter in an indication that Mr Chamisa made the promise just to stop infighting at the congress.

“It doesn’t seem like the matter will be attended anymore, it has been swept under the carpet,” said one of the disgruntled members.

“We expected that soon after the congress, we would be told when the provincial congress would be reconvened but there is no action.”

Another disgruntled member said it was always going to be difficult to reconvene the provincial congress.

“You have to understand that the faction that emerged victorious in Bulawayo did so with the help of Chamisa himself so it means that it is his people and he will not allow them to lose their positions,” said the member.

It was also revealed that the disgruntled members have since approached Mr Chamisa’s deputy Professor Welshman Ncube to find out the status of their matter.

“What the party has done perhaps to try and window dress the issue is that some of the losing candidates at the provincial congress like Jasmine Toffa and Mlandu Ncube have been co-opted into the national executive but that doesn’t solve the crisis we have in Bulawayo.

“The matter still stands because that provincial congress was marred with a lot of irregularities and Chamisa himself was an actor in manipulating the processes,” said a member.

Efforts to get a comment from MDC Alliance spokesperson Mr Daniel Molokele were fruitless.

Bulawayo provincial spokesperson Mr Swithern Chirowodza said they were yet to receive communication on the matter.

“That issue has not been brought to us, what I know is there is harmony in the party,” he said.

A pro-Chamisa camp member said the resolution by the national executive was not final.

“What they fail to appreciate is that the national executive council can only recommend and those recommendations are not final. It is up to the national council to dissolve the province and no such resolution has been made so far,” she said. Chronicle

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