ZCTU torn apart by power struggles

POWER struggles are threatening to tear apart the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), with its president, George Nkiwane, being accused of wanting to cling to power through abusing the constitution.

ZCTU is an MDC-T affiliate

Nkiwane and his secretary-general, Japhet Moyo, face a stern test after being dragged to the High Court for allegedly violating their own constitution by three affiliate labour unions.

The Zimbabwe Banks and Allied Workers' Union, National Energy Workers' Union and Zimbabwe Revenue Authority Trade Union, through their lawyer Lovemore Madhuku, accuse the two of conniving to cling to power by delaying holding an elective congress.

According to court papers filed on Thursday, the elective congress was due to be held from September 29 to October 2 this year, but was postponed following a general council meeting to an unspecified date in July next year.

"Notwithstanding the aforesaid completion of the necessary preparations, on September 10, 2016, a mere 18 days before scheduled date of the eighth general conference a meeting of the general council of ZCTU purportedly ‘postponed' the eighth general conference to [an] unspecified date in July 2017," part of the application read.

The three affiliates want the court to nullify the postponement of the congress and compel that it goes ahead as planned.

They argue that all logistics have now been put in place and that the general council has no power to postpone the conference.

ZCTU is not new to power disputes.

Nkiwane won a long protracted court battle against his predecessor, Lovemore Matombo, who was challenging his election in 2011.