×
NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

Chamisa dumps rallies to meet MDC structures

News
MDC leader Nelson Chamisa is embarking on a whirlwind countrywide tour meeting structures to update them on the state of the party and the upcoming congress, which has been slated for May.

BY OBEY MANAYITI

MDC leader Nelson Chamisa is embarking on a whirlwind countrywide tour meeting structures to update them on the state of the party and the upcoming congress, which has been slated for May.

According to party spokesperson Jacob Mafume, Chamisa’s tour is expected to end mid-March. The tour is seen as a campaign by Chamisa to drum up support and avoid any possible challenge at the upcoming congress.

Already, some structures are falling over each other to endorse Chamisa, who took over from the late party founding president Morgan Tsvangirai.

“The rationale behind meeting the structures is that we need to take stock of what is happening. As you might be aware, a lot has been happening and our members have been arrested and harassed, property being damaged and we need to take stock of that,” Mafume said.

“We need, as a party, to get an appreciation of all that and then map the way forward.

“We have also announced congress dates through the national council and so the president needs to give the structures some feedback and the way forward.”

The MDC spokesperson said they religiously meet with their structures beginning of each year, adding there is nothing sinister about Chamisa going to meet structures because he will not be going out alone.

“It is the beginning of the year and a political party survives like a church. You cannot pray with people you do not meet. He [Chamisa] is the president of the party, but he doesn’t go alone on these meetings. He is going with the whole leadership,” Mafume said.

He said Chamisa would also take the opportunity to update their structures on their position on the national dialogue.

Despite calling for dialogue, MDC has snubbed President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s advances and the latter is currently negotiating with little-known parties that failed to make any significant impact in last year’s harmonised elections.

At the national dialogue, the parties were ordered, among other things, to find a suitable convener and to draw up the agenda.