Ndebele replaces Mukwena as the new MDC chairperson

PILATE Ndebele was on Sunday elected as the new MDC Matabeleland South provincial chairperson replacing Petros Mukwena who was expelled for bringing the party into disrepute.

The election was conducted by Matabeleland South provincial council, which converged at the party's regional office in Bulawayo to elect new office bearers to fill various vacancies in the provincial executive.

Sibekithemba Njani landed the position of deputy organising secretary with Robert Ndlovu securing the secretary for political education and training post.

The filling of posts comes after some senior party officials quit for various reasons, with the major one being unhappiness over the selection of party secretary-general Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga into the National Assembly through proportional representation in Matabeleland South despite her hailing from a province in Harare.

Mukwena had been leading the chorus for the replacement of Misihairabwi-Mushonga with a woman from Matabeleland South.

MDC spokesperson Nhlanhla Dube took a swipe at elements bent on spreading falsehoods on media platforms, especially on the highly contested issue of Misihairabwi-Mushonga, saying that the Matabeleland South provincial council fully endorsed and supported her election to the National Assembly.

Dube also said the provincial council had expressed full confidence in the national leadership which approved the list of the province's candidates.

"As the provincial council, we are dismayed by the malicious media reports around the election of Misihairabwi–Mushonga to represent the party in Parliament on a Matabeleland South proportional representation ticket," Dube said.

The MDC council said people who have been speaking to the media about the issue were never authorised by the provincial executive to make the statements.