MDC suspends senior official

Welshman Ncube led Movement For Democratic Change has suspended National Executive Committee member Kurauone Chihwayi from the party allegedly for failing to shower praises to party Secretary General Priscillia Misihairabwi Mushonga.

Information from senior sources within the party indicate that Chihwayi who is the party's Secretary for International Relations was reprimanded for writing an article in The New Zimbabwe online website praising the leaders of his party and those of the MDC Renewal for coming up with the unification of the party. In the process Chihwayi went on to praise most of the leaders from the two parties mentioning them by name but did not mention Mushonga.

According to the sources, Chihwayi's major mistake was to shower praises for expelled former MDC senior member Petros Mukhwena of Gwanda. Mukhwena has since joined the MDC Renewal where he has been given a very senior position in the National Executive. Mukhwena and Mushonga are reported to be in a sworn cat and mouse enmity and anyone who tries to come between then is at a risk of feeling the heat.

Extracts from Chihwayi's writing that got him into trouble read as follows:

"The unity talks taking place between MDC Renewal and the MDC present an opportunity for the ill-informed and misled citizens to understand some characters like Professor Welshman Ncube, Tendai Biti, Elton Mangoma, Samuel Sipepa Nkomo, Sekai Holland, Goodrich Chimbaira, Edwin Mushoriwa, Frank Chamunorwa, David Coltart and Gorden Moyo. All these people are not in politics for a living but for the genuine love of their country; a country trashed and reduced to a shell."

The sources claim that Chihwayi is accused of inference that Mushonga is in politics to make a living unlike the leaders he mentioned as being in politics "for genuine love of their country."

The paragraph in Chihwayi's writing which led to his fall read as follows:

"Tendai Biti is one principled and courageous fellow with useful arrogance that has kept Robert Mugabe on his toes. He is in the same class with veteran activist Munyaradzi Gwisai in terms of attacking strategies. And we have no reason to doubt the capacity and wisdom in Samuel Sipepa Nkomo who comes from the nationalist league with the likes of Petros Mukwena, Jefret Khumalo, Jacob Moyo and Esaph Mdlongwa."

Comment could not be obtained from Chihwayi and also from the MDC information department .