Chronicle Editor
Nduduzo Tshuma, Political Editor
THE accusations against MDC secretary general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora, who harbours ambitions to lead the opposition party ahead of its congress pencilled for May, that he is being sponsored by the ruling Zanu-PF is nothing new but a case of same script different cast.
Mr Mwonzora, who according to party insiders wants to challenge Mr Nelson Chamisa who wrested the presidency of the party following the death of its founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai last year, has been labelled a Zanu-PF project, an accusation that both the ruling party and Mr Mwonzora have dismissed.
The “Zanu-PF conspiracy” is a tried and tested strategy within the MDC from the days of its founding leader Mr Tsvangirai who used the label to target opponents who challenged him in a dual plot that also involved violence against the targets.
It comes as no surprise therefore that once again the “Zanu-PF conspiracy” is being conveniently employed by Mr Chamisa’s loyalists to cast aspersions on Mr Mwonzora in a bid to scupper his campaign.
However, behind the strategy, that has fooled some within the party over the years, is a party that is deeply undemocratic where ambition or dissent is a crime punishable even by death.
For many years, Mr Tsvangirai used the strategy to his advantage and now Mr Chamisa having taken over the reins has elected to continue the legacy of blaming everything on Zanu-PF just to mask their (opposition) weaknesses and they are many.
At the split of the MDC in 2005 that saw the likes of Professor Welshman Ncube and others break away from the party, they were accused of being agents of Zanu-PF.
The Tsvangirai camp went on to accuse Prof Ncube of being a member of the CIO sent by Zanu-PF to destroy the MDC.
The accusations were repeated against Prof Ncube until 2016 when he visited the ailing Tsvangirai , a visit which also cleansed him of all the labels for he had finally bowed to the former trade union leader.
What was also distinct was that after the accusations of working with Zanu-PF there followed violence targeted at these new enemies and the late Mr Gibson Sibanda and others suffered at the hands of Tsvangirai’s lynch mob.
Other victims of violence included Prof Ncube, Trudy Stevenson, Toendepi Shonhe and Peter Guhu.
In an article posted on his blog in 2006 titled “The reasons why I cannot join the Tsvangirai faction,” former legislator and Minister Mr David Coltart revealed how violence meted against the “pro-senate” group went unpunished by Mr Tsvangirai.
“… the attempt by some MDC youths to murder MDC Director for Security, Peter Guhu, on the 28th September 2004 in Harvest House was deeply shocking, because it breached a fundamental tenet of what we stood for.
“Even worse were the subsequent revelations made at the inquiry into the Guhu incident that senior ranking MDC officials and employees were either involved or sympathetic to the youths.
“No action was taken against any of those responsible for this violence and in that inaction we saw for the first time a culture of impunity developing within the MDC itself, which in some respects was the worst thing of all. Young men often have a predisposition towards violence; that happens the world over and Zimbabwe is no different. What controls that predisposition is the manner in which it is handled by leaders. If it is not dealt with a culture of impunity develops and violence perpetuates itself,” wrote Mr Coltart.
“That is precisely what happened. Those responsible for the September 2004 violence were not immediately disciplined and it came as no surprise when the same youths were used to seriously assault MDC staff members in mid May 2005. A further inquiry was held and its report was presented to the National Council meeting held on the 25th June 2005. It was resolved that one member of staff found responsible for directing the youths be expelled.
“The youths themselves had already been expelled in late May by the Management Committee and the expulsion of the youths was confirmed. That was undoubtedly progress but regrettably it was clear from the evidence that other senior members of the MDC and staff members were also involved or sympathetic towards the youths. Before a full debate about their fate could be held the meeting was ended much to the dissatisfaction of many, including myself.”
He further wrote that all the youths and officials who were expelled for violence were readmitted into the Tsvangirai faction.
In 2014, Mr Elton Mangoma then the party’s deputy treasurer, was beaten up by youths sympathetic to Tsvangirai for calling on the party leader to step down following successive defeats at the hands of Zanu-PF.
Mr Biti accused of holding similar views managed to escape the wrath of the youths but Mr Promise Mkwananzi then the youth assembly’s secretary general was not that lucky as he was assaulted also.
All this happened in the full view of Mr Tsvangirai outside the party’s Harvest House headquarters in Harare now named after the departed founding leader.
Again, and ironically, Mr Mwonzora who was party spokesperson at the time denied that Mr Mkwananzi and Mr Mangoma had been assaulted by MDC-T thugs but blamed Zanu-PF youths for the attack.
But Mr Mangoma said of Mr Tsvangirai: “He led me to the slaughter. I was beaten straight in his face. He was supposed to take me to the car, but suddenly stopped when we were outside where I was beaten up. I bled and my eye-glasses were broken,” Mr Mangoma said.
“I wonder why he is now lying. I don’t know what he wants to achieve, but what I know is the whole thing was planned.”
When the Mangoma-led group left Mr Tsvangirai’s party to form the MDC Renewal, there were also accusations that the group was working with Zanu-PF.
Fast forward to 2018, Dr Thokozani Khupe who was engaged in a tussle for the presidency of the party with Mr Chamisa was hounded out of the party.
This was not before she was beaten up by party thugs sympathetic to Mr Chamisa during the burial of Mr Tsvangirai in Buhera almost to the extent of burning her inside a hut.
When Dr Khupe and others chose to contest in the elections as MDC-T and Mr Chamisa and allies as MDC Alliance, the former Deputy Prime Minister in the days of the inclusive government was also accused of being a Zanu-PF project.
Some went on to suggest that Dr Khupe had received millions of dollars from Zanu-PF.
It is against this background that the opposition has over the years tried to hide behind Zanu-PF to mask its own deficiencies especially on matters to do with democracy.
Theirs has always been a pretence to democracy and good governance; in real terms they are an antithesis of what they claim to represent.
Responding to the latest accusations of Zanu-PF alleged meddling in the MDC affairs, the ruling party’s spokesperson Cde Simon Khaya Moyo said: “That is far far-fetched and absurd to say the least. The stark reality is that the mighty revolutionary Zanu-PF party has no business or can derive any benefit from burdening itself under whatsoever circumstances, with the internal affairs of another political outfit let alone an outfit merely established as an election union of failed politicians.
“It is quite mischievous for anyone to suggest that the ruling party can have an interest in an outfit that does not even have a substantive political identity. Instead of concentrating on pointing artificial fingers, Chamisa’s MDC-Alliance should assign attention and effort towards resuscitating themselves from the political deathbed they are in.
“It is evident that the MDC-Alliance is in complete tatters and is confronted with imminent self-extinction as testified by one of its leaders, Mr Elias Mudzuri, suggesting a possible split at their forthcoming congress. Zanu-PF is preoccupied with the drive to promote social, economic development in line with Vision 2030. We have no time for kindergarten politics.”
Online Reporter