Chamisa's CCC faction suspends Tshabangu

THE Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) standing committee has suspended interim secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu pending a disciplinary hearing. The suspension is with immediate effect.

In a statement, CCC interim committee deputy chairperson Albert Mhlanga said Tshabangu was suspended after failing to attend crucial meetings.

"The CCC interim standing committee sat on February 21 amid a great concern about the appointed CCC interim secretary-general Tshabangu for not attending our meetings on several occasions (despite) invitations [being sent] to him and further went on to submit a Bulawayo Senate and proportional representation replacement list to Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) that was not agreed upon by the interim standing committee in our last meeting," said Mhlanga.

"With immediate effect, the CCC party has suspended the CCC interim secretary-general Tshabangu pending a disciplinary hearing."

Mhlanga added that the CCC camp announced by Harare mayor Jacob Mafume appointing Welshman Ncube as an interim president based on the 2019 Gweru congress is null and void.

"It is a new party of their own (CCC-Welshman) and the formalised CCC that fielded double candidates, constitutionalised, recalled and the one that appointed Tshabangu is the one that was led by the former President Nelson Chamisa who recently resigned from the CCC party leaving us with the interim standing committee now led by the interim chairman Dingilizwe Tshuma.

"Tshuma will lead the party for the next 90 days until a congress date has been set," Mhlanga said.

He said Tshabangu engaged Mafume, Ncube and Tendai Biti who were not part of the interim standing committee that appointed him as the CCC interim secretary-general.

The CCC camp also announced that it nullified the Bulawayo Senate and Proportional Representation replacement list that was submitted by Tshabangu to Zec.

"All elected Members of Parliament, council and senate in August 23, 2023 to remain in their mandated duty up to the end of the term of office and to further consult the stakeholders and citizens on the way forward,'' said Mhlanga.

"We have realised that Tshabangu was only looking for positions through securing our signature to endorse him as the secretary. We had agreed that the recalls would only be effected in Bulawayo to deal with those elected but coming from outside Bulawayo but to our surprise Tshabangu decided on his own to go beyond Bulawayo,'' he said.

Mhlanga accused Tshabangu of going into overdrive recalling some people in Mashonaland provinces who were elected after having signed for them.

"We had complained that President Chamisa had imposed people  from outside Bulawayo and we wanted to correct that but we have realised that Tshabangu is worse than Chamisa by imposing his friends," he said.

"All parties are formed in Bulawayo be it Zapu, Zanu-PF and even the MDC  has its roots in Bulawayo. Any party that is formed outside Bulawayo is bound to fail, so we are an interim national structure pending congress."

Efforts to get a comment from Tshabangu and his spokesperson Khaliphani Phugeni were fruitless as their mobile phones were not reachable.