ZANU PF has insisted that it has nothing to do with the MDC-T internal squabbles which it has described as a result of “ideological bankruptcy”.
BY MOSES MATENGA
Spokesperson for the ruling party, Rugare Gumbo said the ongoing skirmishes in the MDC-T were a result of Western influence, lack of ideology and lack of confidence in party leader Morgan Tsvangirai (pictured right).
“Biti [Tendai] is a senior member of the MDC-T and all those people involved are very senior members. But all of a sudden, they blame Zanu PF, it’s ridiculous,” Gumbo said. “The party has divergent elements from farmers, students, intellectuals and workers but they don’t have a concrete ideological position. Their objective was only to achieve what they called regime change and nothing more.”
He said the various interest groups in the MDC-T were now frustrated that money was not coming through.
“The divisions are engineered by their sponsors who are dissatisfied by Tsvangirai’s failure to dislodge President Mugabe and realise the change they were looking for,” Gumbo said.
“Their main problem is lack of control mechanism to keep people together because of ideological position. This is nothing to do with the CIO or Zanu PF. He is using the CIO as an excuse.”
Tsvangirai and his party have blamed Zanu PF, CIOs and other Western countries for the split that led to secretary general Tendai Biti’s group “suspending” Tsvangirai and other standing committee members.
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The former Premier has however put up a brave face and called for a series of meetings until last Tuesday when the decision to “fire” Biti and others was announced.
Tsvangirai accused Zanu-PF of fuelling divisions in his party and insisted that the MDC still enjoyed popular support in the country.
“It does not make Mugabe stronger, far from it. Mugabe’s strength cannot be based on power; it has to be based on popularity. I don’t believe President Mugabe has the popular support of the people of Zimbabwe,” he said.
MDC-T spokesperson, Douglas Mwonzora has also accused Zanu PF of infiltrating and causing power struggles within the opposition party.
“It is clear that this [last week Saturday] meeting is a culmination of a sustained programme of both overt and covert operations involving Zanu PF, State security agents, Welshman Ncube and the Zimbabwe Institute,” he said.
