Squabbles reach fever pitch in MDC-T's Chegutu branches

Chegutu West MDC-T MP Takalani Matibe and party district officials are locked in a bitter wrangle over control of the constituency, with the former alleging district chairman Ernest Mudimu was a "dubious" office bearer plotting his ouster.

Matibe alleged Mudimu harboured ambitions to take over as MP of the area by unleashing rowdy "mercenary" youths to scuttle his development programmes in order to discredit him ahead of impending elections.

Mudimu was reportedly dismantling party structures, causing divisions working in cahoots with Zanu-PF politicians to cause mayhem within the MDC-T ahead of polls expected this year, Matibe claimed.

"I strongly suspect he is a Zanu PF plant, who is going around the district removing legitimate ward chairpersons and replacing them with his loyalists," Matibe said.

But Mudimu hit back at Matibe, accusing him of taking an "exclusionist-elitist" approach to politics.

"I am the legitimate district chairman with a grip in all 15 wards. However, I have not made public my aspirations to be MP," Mudimu said.

MDC-T District organising secretary Trymore Zhanda added: "The MP wants to usurp our powers as district leaders, but we won't allow that."

Squabbling within the MDC-T Chegutu West constituency reached fever pitch ahead of the party's congress forcing party president Morgan Tsvangirai to announce at a rally at Pfupajena Stadium the district, together with Chinhoyi, would not be represented at the elective congress.

However, Mudimu and his executive were reportedly smuggled into the event in Bulawayo, Matibe claimed.