Zimbabwe’s MDC-T Leader Morgan Tsvangirai – Are these signs of the times to ponder the future? Photo: Heitor-omximo.
It all started after the country’s July 2013 elections in which the main opposition party, MDC-T, was completely whitewashed by the ruling ZANU-PF. Then the blame game started. Many in the party blamed the party leader, Morgan Tswangirai for allowing the ruling party to steal the election right from under their very noses for the umpteenth time.
The Party’s deputy treasurer general, Elton Mangoma then penned a letter to Tswangirai, asking him to step down and pave way for what he referred to as leadership renewal. The party president swiftly responded by suspending Mangoma together with youth Secretary General, Promise Mkhwananzi and two national executive members, Last Maengahama and Jacob Mafume. When quizzed by members of the media about the suspensions and eventual expulsions, Tsvangirai is said to have downplayed the whole fiasco, calling it healthy debate.
Things came to a head on Saturday when some members of the MDC met at the Mendel Training Centre in Marlborough in Harare. The meeting was chaired by the party’s leader for the Guardians, Sipepa Nkomo and is said to have been attended by about 138 members of the party’s 190 members of the National Council. The first port of call for the meeting, which was attended by some members of the opposition, was to rescind the suspensions that had meted out to Mangoma and his fellow MPs by the party’s president. Further to that, the meeting resolved to suspend the party’s leader for the past fifteen years, Morgan Tswangirai as well as other members of his executives, which include Thokozani Khupe (deputy president), Lovemore Moyo (national chairman), Morgan Komichi (deputy national chairman), Nelson Chamisa (organizing secretary), Abednicho Bhebhe (deputy organizing secretary) and David Mwonzora ( information secretary).
Speaking at a press conference, Tendai Biti, the undeclared leader of these members of the national council confirmed the suspensions, adding that these suspensions had been made necessary by the fact that Tsvangirai and the rest of the group had adopted fascist tendencies and were involved in the violence in which they had been preaching about since the inception of the party. According to Sipepa Nkomo who chaired the meeting, the national council to the values of democratic struggle, non-violence and servant leadership. He added that the interim executive which was being led by Sekai Holland would take charge of party affairs and prepare for an elective process.
Responding to the suspensions, the party’s organizing secretary, Nelson Chamisa , who is also among those suspended, laughed off the suspensions saying what had happened was that these rogue elements had formed another party instead of purporting to suspend the standing leadership. He added that Tendai Biti had shown a long time ago that he had leadership ambitions. The national information secretary, David Mwonzora said the MDC would convene a meeting of its critical organs to deal with the matter once and for all.
