MDC-T provincial chair under fire

MDC-T supporters and some of the losing candidates in the primary elections in Zengeza West have written a letter to the party’s Appeals Committee expressing their displeasure over Musundire’s alleged abuse of power.

A source who spoke to The Zimbabwean on condition of anonymity claimed disgruntlement was high among MDC-T supporters from Zengeza West following Musundire’s alleged plot to push for the ousting of former MP Collin Gwiyo.

“Although Musundire is the Chairman, he has totally failed to bring unity in the province and his policies are destructive. The problem is that for quite a long time he has regarded his fellow MPs as enemies after some of them openly challenged his destructive policies.

“In the run up to the confirmation exercise and the primary elections, Musundire went on a crusade to ensure those MPs were booted out. That is why we are saying there were a lot of irregularities concerning the confirmation exercise as well as the primary elections because Musundire was pushing for his allies,” said the source.

Businessman, Simon Chidhakwa is set to represent the MDC-T in Zengeza West in the next election. But sources raised serious reservations about his political background, claiming he has links with Zanu (PF).

A losing candidate for the Zengeza West seat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “I even wrote a petition in my individual capacity concerning this issue but it was ignored and what I was told was that Chidhakwa is the preferred candidate.

“The regulations for one to be eligible to contest were clear that one should have been a member of the party for five years. But surprisingly Chidhakwa only emerged in February and submitted his curriculum vitae.”

The source alleged that Chidhakwa enjoyed the full support of Musundire in his efforts to wrestle Zengeza West from Gwiyo.

“On top of that, the party had made it clear that vote buying would not be allowed during the forthcoming elections but Chidhakwa would give people groceries and cash whenever he held meetings.

“He also bussed people from different areas during the confirmation exercise in Zengeza West and all this was a rigging strategy that had the support of Musundire,” he added.

When contacted for comment, Musundire denied the allegations. “I had no time to de-campaign those people because I was also facing challenges from other aspirants,” said Musundire.

Chidhakwa said he could not comment as he was locked up in a meeting. MDC-T Deputy National Chairman, Morgan Komichi, confirmed that there was disgruntlement among members, but said his party was satisfied with the manner in which the primary elections were conducted and the outcome.

“You will find disputes here and there but as a party we were satisfied that our primary elections were above board and those who made it won in a free and fair manner. Right now, we are focusing on uniting the people because we are one family and have common goals,” said Komichi.