By Derick tsimba

The Saturday council by-elections outcome which saw Zanu PF trouncing MDC in Wedza Ward 4, Tsholotsho Ward 16 and 20 has revealed that the opposition has no support base in rural areas.

On his twitter handle Journalist, Hopewell Chin’ono said MDC was going to remain in perpetual opposition since it had failed to build meaningful rural party structures.

“The MDC needs to seriously introspect! They either want to gain power or they want to remain in perpetual opposition! Elections in rural Zimbabwe are only won through building rural party structures and not here on Twitter. How do you govern when you can’t build structures?” said Chin’ono.

Chin’ono said the MDC was fond of demanding reforms and shunning the elections but failed to take responsibility of the electoral outcome when defeated.

“You either demand for reforms or stop participating in sham elections or you contest and take responsibly for your losses,” he said.

Despite the calls by MDC leader Nelson Chamisa that his party won the 2018 elections, the electoral outcome of the council by-elections is a yardstick that dispels such claims.  

Although by-elections figures usually reduce, Zanu PF continues to trounce MDC with wide margins. In Tsholotsho’s Ward 16, Zanu PF candidate Isaac Moyo received 623 votes whilst MDC candidate Soul Ncube got 147 votes. In Ward 20, Zanu PF candidate Tshoni Mkandla received 414 votes and MDC candidate Mazithulela Khupe had 21 votes.