The Zimbabwe Vigil, a pro-democracy demonstrator group of Zimbabweans in the United Kingdom has urged Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to consider stepping down as MDC-T leader following recent reports of his love life.
The group said although they had respect for the Premier’s “heroic work” in leading the MDC-T for the past twelve years, they felt he should “– as the saying goes – consider his position”.
“We couldn’t help but think of Tsvangirai’s on-off wedding,” they said in a statement. “People were alarmed that Tsvangirai appears to have walked blindly into a Zanu PF trap and has become a laughing stock. There were nods of agreement when someone said ‘How can he rule the country when he’s always in bed? . . . But somehow we doubt Tsvangirai will make way.
“Zanu PF has been paralysed by its inability to renew its leadership. The MDC-T should not make the same mistake. We believe there is no shortage of talent in the MDC-T and, with elections unlikely in the foreseeable future, there would be time for a new leader to make his mark,” said the statement.
But Tsvangirai’s spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka scoffed at the suggestion.
“The Prime Minister was given a five-year mandate at congress on April 28 and it is only the congress that will decide whether or not he should step down. No one else can decide. Besides that, the Prime Minister has not married anyone else, so there is no reason for them to talk about an on-and-off wedding,” he said.
