By Innocent Mujeri
….as uneasiness grips party members ahead of Chamisa court case
Panic and uneasiness have gripped the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Nelson Chamisa ahead of his legitimacy court case with Thokozani Khupe which is likely to be heard by the High Court on 20 March 2020.
Chamisa is to face it off with Thokozani Khupe who is challenging Chamisa’s ascendancy to power after the demise of Morgan Tsvangirai in 2018.
In May 2019, a High Court judge ruled that Chamisa was not the legitimate President of the MDC and his ascendancy to the position violated the party’s 2014 constitution.
The court then ordered the party to convene an extraordinary congress within a month. However, Chamisa appealed against the ruling and Justices Paddington Garwe, Antoinette Guvava and Bharat Patel reserved the ruling to a later date.
The ruling is now expected in about ten days from now and this is causing Chamisa so many sleepless nights also contributing to his uneasiness and panic.
A source who spoke to this publication on condition of anonymity said the majority of the MDC National executive members are of the view that Chamisa will lose the court case and they are now preparing for life after Chamisa.
“All is not well in the party. Mukuru (Chamisa) is having sleepless nights due to the expected judgment because he knows that he is indeed an illegitimate leader as he violated the party constitution during his ascendancy to the highest party position. Indications are that, by the end of this month Chamisa will not be the president of the party,” said the source.
The same source told this publication that Chamisa is now accusing everyone for plotting against him and has since fingered Morgan Komichi, Douglas Mwonzora, Job Sikhala and Thabita Khumalo as some of the people who want him to lose the court case.
It is also believed that Douglas Mwonzora and Morgan Komichi are clandestinely organizing an extra ordinary congress as they are anticipating Chamisa to lose the legitimacy court case.
Mwonzora and Komichi have a bone to chew with Chamisa who had relegated them to the peripheries of the party during the MDC congress held in 2018.
Komichi who was once an ally of Chamisa, has vowed to work tirelessly until Chamisa is dethroned as the MDC leader for letting him down during the 2018 congress.
Another source who spoke to this reporter said some MDC members want Chamisa to breakaway from the party and form his own party. Happymore Chidziva, Chalton Hwende and Amos Chibaya are some of the people who want Chamisa to form his party.
The likes of Tendai Biti and Lynette Karenyi Kore want Chamisa to accept whatever outcome from the High Court. In the event that Chamisa loses the case, which is slowly becoming a reality, the duo wants Chamisa to stay as a card-carrying member until the next congress when he will challenge for the presidency again.
The source also said there are some members in the party who want the judgment to be in Khupe’s favor because they view Chamisa as divisive and a political novice who cannot be entrusted with the brand MDC.
Last weekend, there was a bloody fist fight in Masvingo which left scores of people injured while fighting for party positions. Instead of addressing the lawlessness and factional fights in the MDC, Chamisa is believed to have declared that people are free to leave the party if they are not happy with his leadership.
The power tussles in the MDC are threatening to rip the party apart and Chamisa is believed to have vowed to sink with the party than to let lose his grip on the presidency.
