Mwonzora's MDC-T readies for ordinary congress

The MDC-T is conducting a restructuring exercise ahead of an ordinary congress before the end of the year.

Key positions including that of the party presidency, currently occupied by Douglas Mwonzora are up for grabs.

MDC-T national spokesperson, Witness Dube, said the party will host its ordinary congress within two to three months, once the restructuring exercise has been completed.

"The date is dependent on two issues – completion of provincial structures and availability of funds for the national congress. The structures have to be adopted by the national council, automatically giving the president the mandate to call for a national election after 30 days," he said.

Dube said the party was pacing its progress of provincial structures to coincide with "having enough money to proclaim the date then go through congress within two to three months."

    "We are about 70 percent complete and we don't declare a date until everything is complete, that is structures are tabled and adopted by the national council. The structures become the voting college and are subjected to the national council for adjudication, if there are no issues, the structures are passed as a record and kept in custody," he said.

"MDC-T holds its ordinary congress after five years and when our ordinary congress was due, the Supreme Court (ruling of May 2020) took us back to the 2014 structures that were used to hold the extraordinary congress issue but our constitution is very specific…"

Speaking on the restructuring exercise the party leader, Mwonzora said, "As far as restructuring is concerned Rhino Mashaya – national organising secretary, Benevolence Taisekwa and Mukombwe Dube both deputy organising secretaries, have transformed the way MDC does business. Right now, the MDC is the most active political organisation in the country as we speak day in day out MDC people are meeting in small groups, establishing structures because we think the structures are important."

Mwonzora claimed the MDC-T has adhered to constitutionalism, stating it was "one of the few major opposition parties" that have a constitution.

"We have adhered to our constitution, so in 2020 we had our extraordinary congress to replace our deceased president (Dr Morgan Tsvangirai). I was elected on December 27, 2020, and we are due for the ordinary congress," he said.

"We want to bring a culture of democracy, I'm very happy to say I am presiding over a party whose members are completely free to criticise the president, contest the president when the opportunity arises and say things which are different. We are building internal democracy within the party."

The MDC-T leader said as the party heads toward congress, there were a number of constitutional amendments aimed at making sure that women and youth play their role in leadership.

"You are going to see the codification of women's quota including youth. There are a number of things needed to be put right within the MDC. The issue of structures speaks to the electoral college, of course, the constitutional amendments also deal with policy issues at the congress where we are going to announce major policy decisions," Mwonzora said.

He added that the party would secure finances to fund delegates coming to the congress and not make candidates do that.

"So, candidates will keep their money, they can campaign in other ways than to use financial muscles. Finances are going to come to the party and I'm happy we have secured the finances," claimed the MDC-T leader.

"We are a party in resurgence, we are ready to roll, ready to unleash one of the most dramatic political comebacks in living memory and going to have a dramatic political comeback come next year."