News / National
Khupe's 'political might' under test
01 Sep 2017 at 08:20hrs | Views
THE "political might" of MDC-T vice president Ms Thokozani Khupe comes to test tomorrow at the launch of the MDC Alliance in Bulawayo amid indications that she and national chairperson Mr Lovemore Moyo will not attend the event.
Party insiders yesterday said if Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo were as popular as they believed, the event will be marred by low attendance as their supporters in the grassroots would also stay away.
Ms Khupe, Mr Moyo and MDC-T national organising secretary Mr Abednicho Bhebhe did not attend the initial launch of the MDC Alliance in Harare on August 5 as a show of opposition to the coalition that their boss Mr Morgan Tsvangirai had entered with other political parties.
The trio did not attend the party's extraordinary national executive meeting in Harare last Friday citing security concerns after being bashed by youths reportedly linked to Mr Tsvangirai in Bulawayo on August 6.
Last Friday's national executive meeting suspended Mr Bhebhe for allegedly making damaging statements following their bashing when he insinuated that the youths had been sent from Mr Tsvangirai's office.
However, it is this weekend meeting that will put to test Ms Khupe's "queen bee" status in Bulawayo and Matabeleland should they not attend the meeting.
The non-attendance could also further damage the already strained relations between Mr Tsvangirai and the party's top leadership from Matabeleland with fears of a potential split over the disagreements on the envisaged opposition coalition. Mr Moyo was non-committal on whether or not they would attend Saturday's rally, opting to say "we will cross the bridge when we get there."
"Well, what I can say on that particular issue is that we will cross the bridge when we get there. We wrote to the president and raised a number of issues that we wanted to be discussed before the day of the holding of that rally, among the issues raised is the issue of security that we raised as the reason for non-participation at the meeting of the national executive council," he said.
"I'm not sure yet whether we are going or not, we will have a way forward when we have the meeting and discuss those issues."
However, there are indications that the requested meeting between Mr Tsvangirai and the three might not take place with sources saying the MDC-T leader is expected to arrive in Bulawayo tomorrow.
MDC-T Bulawayo provincial chairperson Mr Gift Banda yesterday would not be drawn to comment on the participation of Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo at the rally. "What I can say is that these leaders you talk about are our seniors and part of the national leadership of the party so we are not best placed to comment on the matter. We are juniors and all I can say is that in any organisation, there are disagreements but we are confident that our leaders will eventually find each other," he said.
"On our part, we are making all efforts in terms of preparation to make sure that the launch is a success."
Sources within MDC-T said the issue of attendance by Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo hold serious consequences.
"If the event is a success without Khupe and many people come to White City Stadium then she would have lost all leverage and could easily end her political career. There is also the issue of the already strained relations between her and Tsvangirai and her non-attendance might just be the last straw," said a source.
Meanwhile, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) is reportedly on the verge of a split over disagreements around coalescing under the MDC Alliance banner, with leader Mr Tendai Biti reportedly threatening to go it alone.
The party, according to insiders, had an explosive meeting in Gweru last Saturday with the party divided into two groups one led by Mr Biti and the other including the party's secretary general Mr Gorden Moyo.
Mr Moyo's group was arguing that they were being given a raw deal in the coalition negotiations and demanding that they would not accept anything if the party was not given four constituencies in Bulawayo. The group, it is said, argued that they had party structures in Matabeleland unlike their other counterparts and hence deserved more.
Insiders said Mr Biti's group argued that the coalition was the best under the circumstances insinuating that their Matabeleland counterparts have a false sense of importance. PDP spokesperson Mr Jacob Mafume downplayed the tiff saying they had a robust meeting that resolved that the coalition was the best way going forward.
Insiders, however, insisted that all is not well in the PDP and if they fail to agree, Mr Moyo's group is likely to break away and form a coalition with National People's Party leader Dr Joice Mujuru.
Party insiders yesterday said if Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo were as popular as they believed, the event will be marred by low attendance as their supporters in the grassroots would also stay away.
Ms Khupe, Mr Moyo and MDC-T national organising secretary Mr Abednicho Bhebhe did not attend the initial launch of the MDC Alliance in Harare on August 5 as a show of opposition to the coalition that their boss Mr Morgan Tsvangirai had entered with other political parties.
The trio did not attend the party's extraordinary national executive meeting in Harare last Friday citing security concerns after being bashed by youths reportedly linked to Mr Tsvangirai in Bulawayo on August 6.
Last Friday's national executive meeting suspended Mr Bhebhe for allegedly making damaging statements following their bashing when he insinuated that the youths had been sent from Mr Tsvangirai's office.
However, it is this weekend meeting that will put to test Ms Khupe's "queen bee" status in Bulawayo and Matabeleland should they not attend the meeting.
The non-attendance could also further damage the already strained relations between Mr Tsvangirai and the party's top leadership from Matabeleland with fears of a potential split over the disagreements on the envisaged opposition coalition. Mr Moyo was non-committal on whether or not they would attend Saturday's rally, opting to say "we will cross the bridge when we get there."
"Well, what I can say on that particular issue is that we will cross the bridge when we get there. We wrote to the president and raised a number of issues that we wanted to be discussed before the day of the holding of that rally, among the issues raised is the issue of security that we raised as the reason for non-participation at the meeting of the national executive council," he said.
"I'm not sure yet whether we are going or not, we will have a way forward when we have the meeting and discuss those issues."
However, there are indications that the requested meeting between Mr Tsvangirai and the three might not take place with sources saying the MDC-T leader is expected to arrive in Bulawayo tomorrow.
MDC-T Bulawayo provincial chairperson Mr Gift Banda yesterday would not be drawn to comment on the participation of Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo at the rally. "What I can say is that these leaders you talk about are our seniors and part of the national leadership of the party so we are not best placed to comment on the matter. We are juniors and all I can say is that in any organisation, there are disagreements but we are confident that our leaders will eventually find each other," he said.
"On our part, we are making all efforts in terms of preparation to make sure that the launch is a success."
Sources within MDC-T said the issue of attendance by Ms Khupe and Mr Moyo hold serious consequences.
"If the event is a success without Khupe and many people come to White City Stadium then she would have lost all leverage and could easily end her political career. There is also the issue of the already strained relations between her and Tsvangirai and her non-attendance might just be the last straw," said a source.
Meanwhile, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) is reportedly on the verge of a split over disagreements around coalescing under the MDC Alliance banner, with leader Mr Tendai Biti reportedly threatening to go it alone.
The party, according to insiders, had an explosive meeting in Gweru last Saturday with the party divided into two groups one led by Mr Biti and the other including the party's secretary general Mr Gorden Moyo.
Mr Moyo's group was arguing that they were being given a raw deal in the coalition negotiations and demanding that they would not accept anything if the party was not given four constituencies in Bulawayo. The group, it is said, argued that they had party structures in Matabeleland unlike their other counterparts and hence deserved more.
Insiders said Mr Biti's group argued that the coalition was the best under the circumstances insinuating that their Matabeleland counterparts have a false sense of importance. PDP spokesperson Mr Jacob Mafume downplayed the tiff saying they had a robust meeting that resolved that the coalition was the best way going forward.
Insiders, however, insisted that all is not well in the PDP and if they fail to agree, Mr Moyo's group is likely to break away and form a coalition with National People's Party leader Dr Joice Mujuru.
Source - chronicle
