By Staff reporter
As MDC national elective congress draws near, violence continues to be a common feature in most of the District Assembly congresses, resulting in most of them being aborted.
In a move that left dozens perplexed over the weekend in Marondera, MDC House of Assembly member, Caston Mateu was attacked by pro- Chamisa faction known as Fire. The vehicle for Marondera MDC Councillor for ward 4, Charles Ngwenya was also vandalised.
Pro Chamisa faction attacked Mateu so that they could instil fear in pro- Mwonzora supporters resulting in them being forced to vote for pro- Chamisa candidate, Witness Muzavazi, a source has revealed.
The Marondera District congress which was first held on 30 March was postponed following violence which was unleashed by pro-Chamisa faction after they saw that they were losing to MDC Secretary General, Douglas Mwonzora’s faction. The elections were later resumed last week Saturday.
In another incident, Headlands District elections were suspended following violence that erupted between the two factions. Gilbert Mutare, pro Mwonzora member who was vying for the Chairmanship was disqualified from contesting because he had not served five years in the MDC party.
The incumbent district Chairperson, Chester Tauro defended Mutare which did not go down well with the aspiring district Chairperson candidate, Samson Magumure. Violence erupted which prompted Magumure to hire 50 prostitutes to cause commotion. The sex workers who were paid US$5 sang derogatory songs. The violence was quelled by Headlands police.
Some members of the MDC who spoke to the Harare Post on condition of anonymity said that Mutare’s disqualification had nothing to do with the number of years served in MDC but fear of being outweighed by the Mwonzora faction.
“Gilbert Mutare was disqualified to contest for Chairmanship because they know that the Mwonzora faction is a threat. It has nothing to do with serving five years in the MDC, this is not the case. There are so many people in leadership but never served five years in the party.
“Chamisa’s faction knows that it is not popular and they are doing whatever they can to outwit anyone aligned to Mwonzora,” said the MDC supporters.
Relatedly, in Goromonzi South district, 300 MDC Chamisa faction members stormed the district congress and barred pro-Mwonzora faction from contesting. The gang which was led by Davidson Chamisa and John Gumbo had to ensure that it left the scene after everyone aligned to Mwonzora faction had been dispersed.
Hwange West district congress was also suspended after violence initiated by pro-Chamisa faction had erupted. Sixty visibly drunkards just entered the hall and demanded that a list which they had brought be used as the Electoral College.
The violence in MDC has spread to all districts in the country. Goromonzi North, Hwedza North and Murehwa North also experienced violence with pro-Mwonzora faction being targeted. The fear is that the national congress might also be marred by violence.
