Tsvangirai climbs down after huge setback

MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai has declined to take increased powers his loyalists had attempted to give him.

Proposals by some members to force constitutional changes in the party and give Tsvangirai powers to appoint national executive members and water down the powers of the secretary-general had created tension in the labour-backed movement.

Some members had been expressing fears that the proposed constitutional changes would turn the MDC-T into another Zanu-PF where President Robert Mugabe almost single-handedly decides the fate of the ruling party.

But after a 12-hour meeting of the national executive on Thursday and a six-hour national council meeting yesterday, MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said Tsvangirai would no longer handpick members of the executive as had been proposed.

But Tsvangirai edged closer to asserting his powers by ensuring that no meetings would be held without his approval.

However Mwonzora said: "It is not in the DNA of Morgan Tsvangirai to be a dictator. He does not aspire to be a Mugabe who handpicks his politburo."

Mwonzora said the issue of two vice-presidents was also shot down in the meeting because it was seen to be a waste of national resource.

"This was introduced by Zanu-PF to atone for the Gukurahundi [massacres] and when we formed the MDC, we did not have that because it was seen to be a waste of resources," Mwonzora said.

The MDC-T will today start its provincial congresses that would also nominate members to contest for national executive posts at the congress to be held from October 29 to 31.

All elections from provincial structures to national would be by secret ballot, Mwonzora said.