News / National
Tsvangirai tells 'fatigued' supporters to remain resolute
25 Sep 2013 at 08:13hrs | Views
MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai addresses a rally
MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday rallied party members to remain resolute and avoid being distracted by the negative publicity the party has been receiving following its defeat in the July 31 polls.
Addressing the 21 MDC-T activists who were recently acquitted by the High Court after spending 28 months in remand prison over the alleged murder of Police Inspector Petros Mutedza in Glen View, Tsvangirai said party members should take a leaf from former South African President Nelson Mandela who endured 27 years in prison, but never looked back until the country became independent.
He said the negative reports being peddled by the party's detractors should spur MDC-T members to fight on.
"You were incarcerated for two years, you have served although you were innocent, and this is the injustice we are fighting. You are free now, but you should know that freedom is circumscribed freedom," Tsvangirai said.
"The arrests are meant to demoralise you. Struggle is not an instant coffee, but a process. We are prepared for a marathon, not a sprint. With the July 31 polls, the struggle has been deferred, but not abandoned," he said.
"Others were already suffering from support fatigue. But as the leader of the party, I call upon all of you to continue with the struggle until we achieve freedom. The spirit is to continue fighting until the last man standing."
Tsvangirai also warned his supporters to be wary of "pub talk" on leadership renewal, saying the calls were being propagated by Zanu-PF to cause disharmony in the MDC-T.
Tsvangirai lost the last elections to Mugabe, but his party refused to accept defeat, claiming the polls were rigged. The defeat has fuelled a push for leadership renewal within the MDC-T with the party's Marondera Central losing parliamentary candidate Iain Kay and exiled treasurer-general Roy Bennett publicly calling for Tsvangirai to step down.
The MDC-T leader has, however, said he will only step down in the event that he is voted out at the party's next elective congress in 2016.
Addressing the 21 MDC-T activists who were recently acquitted by the High Court after spending 28 months in remand prison over the alleged murder of Police Inspector Petros Mutedza in Glen View, Tsvangirai said party members should take a leaf from former South African President Nelson Mandela who endured 27 years in prison, but never looked back until the country became independent.
He said the negative reports being peddled by the party's detractors should spur MDC-T members to fight on.
"You were incarcerated for two years, you have served although you were innocent, and this is the injustice we are fighting. You are free now, but you should know that freedom is circumscribed freedom," Tsvangirai said.
"Others were already suffering from support fatigue. But as the leader of the party, I call upon all of you to continue with the struggle until we achieve freedom. The spirit is to continue fighting until the last man standing."
Tsvangirai also warned his supporters to be wary of "pub talk" on leadership renewal, saying the calls were being propagated by Zanu-PF to cause disharmony in the MDC-T.
Tsvangirai lost the last elections to Mugabe, but his party refused to accept defeat, claiming the polls were rigged. The defeat has fuelled a push for leadership renewal within the MDC-T with the party's Marondera Central losing parliamentary candidate Iain Kay and exiled treasurer-general Roy Bennett publicly calling for Tsvangirai to step down.
The MDC-T leader has, however, said he will only step down in the event that he is voted out at the party's next elective congress in 2016.
Source - newsday
