by Innocent Mujeri
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change-Alliance (MDC-A) is reportedly struggling to restructure its Bulawayo party structures as members are resisting the abolishment of the Ward Executive Committees that are set to be conducted in the near future, the Harare Post can report.
The MDC-A structure is comprised of Branches, Wards, Districts, Provincial and the National Executive Committee.
A source who sits in the MDC-A Bulawayo Provincial Executive told this publication that the party resolved at its 2019 congress to abolish the Wards Executive Committees.
However the implementation of the party’s 2019 resolution to do away with the Ward structures is facing some huddles as members of the Ward Executive Committees are throwing spanners on the exercise.
The same source revealed that the restructuring exercise was supposed to start last year but the exercise is moving at a snail’s pace due to the squabbles and infighting within the party.
“The restructuring exercise has been a torrid task for the party as those responsible could hardly get people to attend the restructuring meetings. This is because most of the party members are shunning meetings being called by the Provincial Executive citing irregularities in the whole restructuring exercise,” said the source.
“The ward executive members are of the opinion that the party wants to render them useless by dissolving the Ward Executive Committees, hence their resistance to the intended restructuring exercise. The ward executive members are not certain that they will get positions in the District Executives as the positions are already occupied by others,” continued the same source.
Another source who preferred anonymity said the party’s 2019 Congress resolution of discarding the Ward Executives was not concurred to by many people, hence the resistance to the restructuring exercise.
However, analyst Godfrey Magombedze said the challenges in the restructuring process of the MDC-A Ward Executive Committees is a clear signal that many people had pulled out of the party for various reasons.
Meanwhile a source from MDC also told this publication that the party’s resolution to penetrate rural areas is facing a brick wall as most rural people are distancing themselves from the party.
Rural penetration has been interpreted by various political analysts as a signal for the dwindling support base of the opposition outfit.
