Congress divides MDC-T

Comment & Analysis
BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE THE MDC-T congress scheduled for this month end has virtually split the party into two camps as senior party members jostle to position themselves ahead of the watershed election, authoritative sources said.

The sources said one camp is led by the party’s women’s assembly chairlady Theresa Makone and her husband Ian.

The couple is believed to be working closely with incumbent organising secretary Elias Mudzuri.

The other camp, said the sources, is led by Finance Minister Tendai Biti, the party’s secretary general.

Mudzuri, who is said to be gunning for Speaker of Parliament Lovemore Moyo’s job as the MDC national chairman, is accused of using his current post to re-arrange the party’s structures for his camp’s benefit.

“Mudzuri has deployed provincial campaign managers for his camp on the pretext of organising party structures,” said a senior MDC-T official.

“But what we have gathered is that they are preparing the ground for members of their faction ahead of the congress.”

But Mudzuri on Friday denied the deployments were designed to strengthen the alleged factions. He said they were meant to embolden the whole party.

Mudzuri said the selection of “oversight teams” deployed into provinces was done through the proper party channels when they were selected by the standing committee and confirmed by the national executive.

“There is a system that is set for such a deployment so I don’t have any influence other than that I am the organising secretary and I update the party about developments in all the provinces,” Mudzuri said.

He also denied that he intended to contest the post of national chairman, insisting that he wanted to serve two terms as organising secretary.

“I will leave after two terms after making sure that the party’s structures are well organised,” Mudzuri said.

However sources said Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who is assured of retaining his post as MDC leader, fears this gulf could widen to levels akin to Zanu PF’s Solomon Mujuru and Emerson Mnangagwa factions.

The Mujuru and Mnangagwa factions are fighting to succeed President Robert Mugabe, who has been ruling the country for the past three decades.

“Tsvangirai is worried of this development because there is hatred among members as if they are not from the same party,” said another official.

On Thursday Mudzuri told journalists that the party had drafted a code of conduct that will guide the holding of elections. 

According to the code those involved in vote buying, violence, defamation, intimidation, tribalism and nepotism would be punished.But sources said the code was mooted after the party leadership noticed the vicious and unorthodox campaign methods that were being used by one of the factions.

Chamisa dismissed the issue of factionalism blaming ambitious party members of spreading falsehoods in their bid to win posts.

“I know where all this is coming from,” Chamisa said.

“But these are lies by people who want to influence the election process.”

The MDC-T congress, which is expected to draw about 5 000 delegates, has been set for April 30 to May 1, in Bulawayo.

The party’s youth and women’s assemblies will hold their separate congresses on April 29.

The congress, which will run under the theme “United, Winning – The People’s Covenant to Real Change, will have Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga as guest of honour.