MDC Alliance president Mr Nelson Chamisa on Tuesday threw
former Bulawayo deputy mayor, Mr Gift Banda under the bus when he declared that
his party will investigate circumstances leading to him acquiring a 3,5-hectare
piece of land at Ascot race course.
The former deputy mayor who is now the MDC Alliance Member
of Parliament for Njube-Lobengula constituency, bought the piece of land in
2015 and was cleared of any wrong doing by an independent tribunal. He has
since built town houses on the land.
Responding to questions from journalists on Tuesday, Adv
Chamisa while professing ignorance on the purchase, said he was shocked that Mr
Banda was allowed to go ahead as this was against the principles of the
opposition party. He revealed that they will investigate the circumstances
leading to the purchase.
The latest sentiments by Adv Chamisa come at a time when Mr
Banda is out on bail in a case where he is accused of conniving with a local
real estate company to forge signatures to sell a residential stand in
Selbourne Brooke in Bulawayo.
“Going forward, within the party, certain elements have to
be subjected to interrogation and enquiries so that we maintain the highest of
standards, so there will be no sacred cows. Now that I am aware that is what
the former deputy mayor did, we shall get to the bottom of it.
“Actually, all local authorities are going to be subjected
to this integrity and accountability tests. We now have hotlines where if our
councillors or mayors have crossed the line, we won’t hesitate to throw them
out,” Adv Chamisa.
He blasted councillors from his party for focusing on
self-enrichment, forgetting their mandate of serving the communities that
elected them.
“I have told our councillors that their duty is to become
centres of excellence and sources of a difference in our politics. Most of the
councillors from our party now think MDC is an employment agency where people
are employed in local authorities or Parliament
“Integrity is what we demand hence the Banda issue has to
be investigated. I am honestly shocked that part of the race course was sold to
an individual, it’s bizarre, we want to understand the circumstances,
especially when you are saying it was the former deputy mayor, perhaps it was a
legal transaction but there is a clear conflict of interest,” he said.
Mr Chamisa said there were rules that will help deal with
the former deputy mayor.
“In the MDC we have implemented a new rule where we are
saying all our leaders must sign the real change code of ethics and values,
where we saying one is not allowed to benefit from positions. I know in Africa
we have a saying that says a goat eats where it is tied, but the same goat is
slaughtered at that same position, which is how we will be dealing with such
people because it is a bad tendency,” he said.
Adv Chamisa said in some cases there was a significant
change in the life styles of MDC-A councillors and MPs. “That is not proper
because the essence of representation is not self-improvement but improve the
communities that you represent,” said Adv Chamisa.
A number of councillors aligned to the opposition have
previously been accused of corruption leading to their suspension by the
Government. Chronicle
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