By Chief reporter

….as pressure mounts on him

Following increased pressure from his party members and the party’s benefactors, MDC leader, Nelson Chamisa is reportedly desperate to meet with Roman Catholic Church Priest, Father Fidelis Mukonori in a bid to convince him to broker negotiations between him and President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

A source close to Father Mukonori revealed that Chamisa sent a high powered delegation to Father Mukonori last week to book an appointment for him and the Catholic priest.

“Last week, a delegation sent by Chamisa came and met Father Mukonori in a bid to convince the Father to meet with Chamisa.

“The delegation which was led by Welshman Ncube (co-Vice President) also comprised of Lynette Karenyi Kore (co-Vice President), Chalton Hwende (Secretary General), Concillia Chinanzvavana (Deputy Secretary General) and Amos Chibaya (Organising Secretary),” the source revealed.

The source also revealed that Father Mukonori advised the delegation that if efforts for negotiations are to commence, Chamisa had to meet certain conditions.

She said, “Father Mukonori advised the delegation that if he was to commit to brokering negotiations between him and President Mnangagwa, Chamisa had to meet certain conditions to prove his seriousness.

“Father Mukonori stressed that the first thing Chamisa had to do was to drop the ‘illegitimacy’ mantra in order to be able to initiate dialogue. He added that Chamisa also had to join the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) to show his sincerity in dialogue.”

The source highlighted that Father Mukonori stressed on the need for Chamisa to be sensitive to the challenges being faced by the people of Zimbabwe and encouraged him to take a leaf from the late Morgan Tsvangirai, who despite controversy surrounding his defeat in the 2008 Presidential election, joined former President, the late Robert Mugabe in a Government of National Unity (GNU).

Information gathered by this publication reveals that Chamisa of late has come under pressure from party members and the party’s benefactors, especially the United States (US) who feels like the ‘illegitimate’ mantra no longer has juice.  

The US, according to the information, are in agreement with MDC Provincial Organising secretaries who resolved at their recent meeting to push for dialogue between Chamisa and President Mnangagwa while the US believe the MDC could have more impact in influencing reforms as part of a GNU rather than continuing with the ‘illegitimate’ mantra.

At the launch of POLAD, President Mnangagwa highlighted the importance of dialogue between different political parties in continued efforts to improve the country’s socio-economic challenges which Chamisa thus far had snubbed.