MDC-T heads for a split

Holds National Council… Youths Bay for Mangomas Blood 

The storm is brewing in the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) as the Party is set to hold a stormy National Council at the Party's Headquaters Harvest on Friday 7 March.

The National Council is the first to be held since Deputy Treasurer General Elton Mangoma wrote a scathing letter to the Party's President Morgan Tsvangirai calling for his resignation.

The Council has on top of its Agenda, the discussion around the rebels who want to effect a technical coup of Mr Tsvangirai. This reporter was reliably informed that camps sympathetic to the Mangoma cause and those loyal to the President have started kangaroo meetings caucusing and gearing up for a showdown on Friday.

A legislator from Manicaland who spoke on position of anonymity told this reporter that, "We are ready for the Council on Friday and we are aware that Mangoma, Biti and their camp are holding unconstitutional meetings plotting to cause chaos during the Council, we are ready to stand by Save (Tsvangirai's totem) through thick and thin and all their evil plans will be exposed."

He fumed ," (Tendai) Biti and Mangoma must split if they are not comfortable within the Party and the bulk of people in Manicaland believe now that a split is necessary to cleanse the party of malcontents within the Movement." A youth Leader in the top eight National Executive told this re porter that as Youths they are carrying to the Council a clear position that came out of their National Youth Council meeting last month.

"We have a resolution that Mangoma as the crafter of this chaos has shown that he is a crafty fellow and if we had our way he would be physically counseled but as a democratic Movement we are calling for his suspension from office pending a disciplinary hearing. We are fully behind the President. Although we have some Leaders in the Youth Assembly who are taking sides with the rebels but we are going to deal with them at our level after the Mangoma nonsense has been effectively squashed (sic), " he said.

The MDC split in 2005 at a national Council of similar nature where there were two factions supporting and opposing the participation in the Senate Elections.