CCC to impose leaders

THE Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) is embarking on new processes to elect its national leaders, thereby possibly ditching the traditional congresses.

This follows recent reports that the party, formed in January this year ahead of the March 26 by-elections, was a one-man show for Nelson Chamisa.

There are also increased calls for the new political outfit to hold an elective congress.

Exiled former ministers Professor Jonathan Moyo and Walter Mzembi led the charge last week calling for Chamisa to hold a special congress to launch the party constitution, build structures, elect leadership and come up with an election manifesto.

Since its formation early this year, the party has insisted that all party members will hold interim positions while it consults citizens.

Political observers, however, raised concerns that the stance would diminish the CCC's image as a vanguard of democracy.

In an interview yesterday, CCC spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere said:

"The CCC is consulting citizen assemblies throughout all provinces where structures are being built to ensure every street, village and farm is part of a branch.

"These are the same citizens in urban and rural areas who were consulted and who pushed for the creation of a brand new political party," Mahere said, adding that the party was introducing a new political doctrine.

"We urge the citizens not to expect old ways from these new wineskins. We commit to doing things differently. Expect the new."

The CCC, she added, was a citizens' project that carried new values, a new political culture, a new thinking, and a new way of community organisation.

"The people are being consulted so that we don't impose our own ideas on them. Rather, the citizens must own their movement," she said.

The CCC, according to Mahere, would roll out all other mechanisms at the appropriate time while calling party supporters to trust the process. She said party leaders would be selected by a democratic process led by the citizens while details around this would be unveiled at the appropriate time.

"President Chamisa has been anything but silent.  He has addressed citizen assemblies, small group meetings, village meetings, and a host of other community and special interest groups," Mahere said.

"The clear message has been that CCC is a movement that puts the citizens at the centre of all decision-making and all matters of governance, leadership selection, budgetary priorities, and policy-making."

Mahere said the movement was seeking to complete the unfinished business of the liberation struggle.

"It is a party that champions prosperity, opportunity and protection for all Zimbabweans regardless of their location or status in society.

"We are all equal as citizens of our country. We advocate for a Zimbabwe where every person is accorded their inalienable rights irrespective of race, colour, creed, age, sex, religious affiliation, national origin or disability," she added.

Mahere said Chamisa has made it clear that the party's mission was to drive a new national consensus, a new conversation, a new convergence, a post-liberation consensus and a democratisation consensus.

The CCC garnered 19 out of 28 seats in the March 26 by-elections.