News / National
MDC-T veterans warn Nelson Chamisa
02 Jul 2014 at 06:28hrs | Views
SOME founding MDC-T members calling themselves party veterans have vowed to block the party's organising secretary Nelson Chamisa's quest from being elected into the standing committee at the elective congress set for October.
The MDC-T Veterans' Association (MDC VA) is engaged in a bitter war with Chamisa after the latter dismissed them as a bogus grouping during a party structures' crisis meeting held in Bulawayo last Saturday.
Chamisa argued that there was no organisation called the MDC VA citing the party's constitution.
He also argued that having such an organisation caused divisions between the old guard and those that joined the party recently because the struggle was not yet over.
Victor Zunza, the MDC VA national chairperson, told our sister paper Southern Eye that Chamisa wants to silence them to ensure that he gets rid of any would-be backers of those contesting him for top party positions at the congress.
Chamisa is reportedly eyeing the secretary-general's position that fell vacant following the mutiny of Tendai Biti and other party members under the banner of the MDC-T Renewal Team calling for a change of the guard.
MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora is also allegedly eyeing the secretary-general's position.
"He is shooting himself in the foot. He will be surprised after congress to see himself being an ordinary card-carrying member of the party just because there is no way that the MDC VA will support such a character to be a secretary-general," Zunze said in an interview.
The MDC VA was formed in 2008 to look into the welfare of party victims of political violence residing in Zimbabwe and abroad.
Chamisa has said he is not eyeing the secretary-general's position, but would accept the position if "the people say so".
Last Sunday, he told Southern Eye that he did not support the MDC VA because the struggle was still on-
going.
The MDC-T Veterans' Association (MDC VA) is engaged in a bitter war with Chamisa after the latter dismissed them as a bogus grouping during a party structures' crisis meeting held in Bulawayo last Saturday.
Chamisa argued that there was no organisation called the MDC VA citing the party's constitution.
He also argued that having such an organisation caused divisions between the old guard and those that joined the party recently because the struggle was not yet over.
Victor Zunza, the MDC VA national chairperson, told our sister paper Southern Eye that Chamisa wants to silence them to ensure that he gets rid of any would-be backers of those contesting him for top party positions at the congress.
MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora is also allegedly eyeing the secretary-general's position.
"He is shooting himself in the foot. He will be surprised after congress to see himself being an ordinary card-carrying member of the party just because there is no way that the MDC VA will support such a character to be a secretary-general," Zunze said in an interview.
The MDC VA was formed in 2008 to look into the welfare of party victims of political violence residing in Zimbabwe and abroad.
Chamisa has said he is not eyeing the secretary-general's position, but would accept the position if "the people say so".
Last Sunday, he told Southern Eye that he did not support the MDC VA because the struggle was still on-
going.
Source - newsday
