News / National
MDC launches $1 and R1 campaign to raise funds
08 Apr 2011 at 09:17hrs | Views
THE MDC-T party led by Morgan Tsvangirai is agitating for a delay in the general elections as it has no funds to finance a nationwide election campaign across the country, it has emerged. The party has been on a regional offensive to try a delay elections to buy time to raise funds.
Tsvangirai has also made various attempts at delaying the election by claiming that there is no "existence of electoral conditions that will not produce another contested outcome" and that the decision to hold elections is made by the prime minister and the president.
Ironically, Tsvangirai has also made claims that the inclusive Government is not functional.
He recently commented: "The inclusive Government has demonstrated over the past six months that it is dysfunctional that I can concede." Last month Tsvangirai visited regional leaders in the run up to the Sadc Troika meeting in Livingstone (Zambia) and told them about unsubstantiated claims of political violence in Zimbabwe. It is alleged that Tsvangirai has not brought up the issue in Cabinet meetings he attends weekly which are chaired by President Robert Mugabe. Last month President Mugabe convened a Special Cabinet meeting in which he urged the MDC-T to present to him with a detailed report of all cases of Zanu-PF violence against MDC-T members. The party failed to present such a report or cite specific cases of politically motivated violence.
The party's funding has dwindled as their allies in the west are no longer able to fund them at the scale they did in previous election periods as they are facing problems in their own countries.
Despite being illegal under the Political Parties Finance Act 1992 where there is no provision for the financing of political parties in Zimbabwe, the MDC-T has enjoyed huge funding from the US and Britain and other western countries. The MDC-T has, however, resorted to other "desperate means" to raise funds, including the launching of an anti Zanu-PF website, which will be run by treasurer general, Roy Bennett. Bennett is calling for $1 donations to the MDC-T towards the next elections. Bennett has also been been given a new role by the MDC-T under the so-called "global advocacy programme", in which he will engage the US and EU 'directly' to raise funds. Bennett recently revealed that he had to leave Zimbabwe as that would have left the MDC-T unable to raise funds for the elections. MDC-T spokesman Nelson Chamisa is on record saying that their election campaigns are financed via membership fees and other in-country fundraising efforts.
Tsvangirai has also made various attempts at delaying the election by claiming that there is no "existence of electoral conditions that will not produce another contested outcome" and that the decision to hold elections is made by the prime minister and the president.
Ironically, Tsvangirai has also made claims that the inclusive Government is not functional.
He recently commented: "The inclusive Government has demonstrated over the past six months that it is dysfunctional that I can concede." Last month Tsvangirai visited regional leaders in the run up to the Sadc Troika meeting in Livingstone (Zambia) and told them about unsubstantiated claims of political violence in Zimbabwe. It is alleged that Tsvangirai has not brought up the issue in Cabinet meetings he attends weekly which are chaired by President Robert Mugabe. Last month President Mugabe convened a Special Cabinet meeting in which he urged the MDC-T to present to him with a detailed report of all cases of Zanu-PF violence against MDC-T members. The party failed to present such a report or cite specific cases of politically motivated violence.
The party's funding has dwindled as their allies in the west are no longer able to fund them at the scale they did in previous election periods as they are facing problems in their own countries.
Despite being illegal under the Political Parties Finance Act 1992 where there is no provision for the financing of political parties in Zimbabwe, the MDC-T has enjoyed huge funding from the US and Britain and other western countries. The MDC-T has, however, resorted to other "desperate means" to raise funds, including the launching of an anti Zanu-PF website, which will be run by treasurer general, Roy Bennett. Bennett is calling for $1 donations to the MDC-T towards the next elections. Bennett has also been been given a new role by the MDC-T under the so-called "global advocacy programme", in which he will engage the US and EU 'directly' to raise funds. Bennett recently revealed that he had to leave Zimbabwe as that would have left the MDC-T unable to raise funds for the elections. MDC-T spokesman Nelson Chamisa is on record saying that their election campaigns are financed via membership fees and other in-country fundraising efforts.
Source - Byo24News
