Chamisa has the last laugh

NELSON Chamisa, now one of the three vice presidents in the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) led by Morgan Tsvangirai, has emerged as the proverbial cat - which has nine lives.

Having fallen out of favour in his party since 2013, he has suddenly rose, literally, from the dead to have the last laugh after Tsvangirai suddenly elevated him to vice president in a move many believe is an attempt to manage the succession politics in the MDC-T.

Or maybe he should not celebrate as yet since a storm that threatens to split the party is brewing following his appointment.

Three years ago, Chamisa's political career and indeed his political star in the country's largest opposition party, the MDC-T, appeared to have fallen after colleagues blamed the young politician for the defeat the party suffered at the hands of Zanu-PF in the 2013 elections.

Chamisa was accused of underestimating the extent and vigour of Zanu-PF's election machinery.

He was said to have slept at the wheel and failed to take stock of the party's grassroots support.

The costly mistake saw Zanu-PF launch a full scale offensive characterised by door to door campaigns.

The question that dominated conversation back then was whether Chamisa had become so enamoured by the trappings of government life, while serving as information communications technology minister, that he had forgot his party duties?

At the age of 35 years, Chamisa had landed the ministerial post, making him the youngest minister in the country at the time.

Indeed, in the aftermath of the 2013 elections, political observers began to write Chamisa's political eulogy as it appeared that his rise had suddenly come to a screeching halt.

But perhaps the lowest point for Chamisa came in 2014, when he lost his bid for the party's secretary general position during the MDC-T's elective congress.

He lost the race to Douglas Mwonzora, the current party secretary-general (SG) in a tightly contested election, which some believe was massaged against Chamisa.

Chamisa's loss saw him being downgraded to an ordinary card-carrying member, leaving him quite vulnerable with rumours abound that Zanu-PF had set their sights on him.

As if this was not enough, his political career took another knock in 2014 when some members of the party, led by Tendai Biti and Elton Mangoma, were expelled from the MDC-T after calling for leadership renewal.

While Chamisa was also linked to the group campaigning for leadership renewal, he kept a low profile and survived the chop.

Later, the icy relations began to thaw and Tsvangirai co-opted him into the MDC-T's national executive committee which probably marked his slow retu

"I think his recent promotion may be an indication that he has a big role to play in the MDC T's future and may be a part of the succession plan in the event Tsvangirai is incapacitated by illness," said Zibusiso Dube, a political commentator.

"The fact that Tsvangirai had the audacity to handpick him shows that he is in his corner. However, it also raises concerns for the party as his rise is seemingly at the expense of Thokozani Kkupe, who, as the sole vice president, would have been expected to be Tsvangirai's successor."

The support over his elevation has been rapturous.

The MDC-T's Youth Assembly has boasted over how "one of its own" now sat in the presidium structures of the country's largest opposition party.

This show of support for Chamisa however, does not mean that it is unanimous across the party's rank and file.

Party insiders say that many are aggrieved and these include, Khupe, Mwonzora and Obert Gutu, the national spokesman, among many others.

Indeed, Chamisa's rise means that he has stepped over many people's heads and placed his foot inside the doorway leading to the party's top job.

Chamisa has already indicated that he is going to be serving as vice president on a full-time basis, shrugging off a court challenge to his appointment.

In an interview this week with the Financial Gazette, he said he was deeply humbled to serve Tsvangirai and the people of Zimbabwe and said he had an agenda of delivering a new Zimbabwe.

"My responsibility is to help and assist the president of the party. Revolutions of the struggle are not built on the ambitions of an individual, but it is about the willingness of the collective. I thank the president of MDC-T and people of Zimbabwe for this opportunity, but also remember that promotion comes neither from the east nor from the west, but from Jehovah. The task now is to deliver a new Zimbabwe," he said.

Rashweat Mukundu, chairperson of the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, a local think-tank, said Chamisa's inclusion was a sign of changing times within the MDC-T politics and was indicative of an impending change of leadership.

"Despite the criticism, the MDC-T has done well in bringing in young people like Chamisa. It's an encouraging sign that young politicians can assume leadership and hopefully other parties will follow suit. Chamisa is capable and was mature enough to remain in the party and not lose his head when he lost the SG position to Mwonzora.

"He exemplifies mature politics of waiting and pouncing at the opportune time. Not despairing with losses, but learning from mistakes," he said.

Political commentator, Khanyile Mlotshwa, however, said Chamisa was set to be tested as his recent appointment had proved to be a prickly issue for some in the party.

"With signs of serious cracks starting to appear over his and Elias Mudzuri's appointment, I doubt he can hold the party together. The challenge is for him to prove the doubters wrong," he said.

Regardless of the challenges ahead, Chamisa's focus is firmly on the 2018 elections and it appears he will give his all so that the MDC-T has another chance to bring change to Zimbabwe.

Is he after the satisfaction of etching his name in the hall of history as one of those that brought down the ruling party or there is more to it? Only time will tell.