MDC presidential hopeful Elias Mudzuri has claimed that he was mandated by the party’s founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai to unite members and is surprised that “children” in the party are now “fighting him”.
The Supreme Court ordered that Thokozani Khupe should be the acting president and the party should hold extraordinary congress to elect new leaders within three months.
Mudzuri told Business Times this week he had nurtured MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa who is like his own son but newcomers have been creating confusion in the party.
“…We have new comers like Charlton Hwende who are saying they have expelled me and what have I done wrong to be fought in that way,” Mudzuri said.
“I have been fought by the people since I was a mayor and some of these people wanted to expel me and they later left the party and formed their own political parties and have come back and joined us again and we have welcomed them back and everyone in the party structures knows they are causing a lot of trouble.”
He said all the posts are up for grabs at the congress as Khupe is the acting president who could be contested by any party member.
The former Harare executive mayor said he was not going to be resigning from the Parliament as he had joined politics voluntarily and had been chosen by the people to represent them and not to serve the interests of individuals.
According to sources, Mudzuri will have to battle it out with Mwonzora and Khupe for the top post.
Party chairman Morgan Komichi is said to be eyeing the vice president’s post while Abednico Bhebhe is eyeing the organising secretary post.
Komichi said he was not focusing on occupying any senior post at the moment but on rebuilding the party.
“It is correct that I have been the party chairman and vice president at one time in the party and I can retain those posts if people vote for me at the congress but I am not going to be commenting much on the party posts until the congress as we want to clear the coronavirus and I shall be contesting in the elections,” he said.
MDC has to hold the extraordinary congress by July 31 as prescribed by the Supreme Court ruling.
