By Patience Rashai

Sitting MDC legislators are in a quandary seeking to ring-fence their seats in parliament, following the recent Supreme Court ruling dethroning their self-imposed party president, Nelson Chamisa.

The court judgement has since caused mayhem within the party, with most rushing to appeal to Chamisa’s most trusted lieutenants to ensure that their seats are secure in the event of by-elections under a new party led by Chamisa.

An embattled MDC House of Assembly member confided that the party was certainly headed for messy squabbles given that legislators were rushing to secure their seats aligning themselves to whoever seemed politically lucrative.

“Given that there is general consensus that the party will be going for congress in the next three months or so, most legislators feel that they would rather align with Chamisa whom they think is more popular.

“Likewise Chamisa’s lieutenants have been making rounds threatening legislators to pledge allegiance to him. I am sure you have heard of how Hwende and Biti have been all over compelling legislators and councillors to sign affidavits declaring allegiance to Chamisa,” he said.

As conditions to tag along with Chamisa, MDC legislators are said to have argued that their seats should not be contested in the event of by-elections under Chamisa, a condition which despairing Chamisa is reported to have gladly agreed to.

Information at hand sign post to the fact that Chamisa is being backed by former students activists while the Khupe faction is being supported by the party founders and former trade unionists.

Purina Mpariwa, Murisi Zwizwai, Innocent Gonese, have been fingered among the lot vying for Chamisa.

This is not the first time that the beleaguered party has had a splitter group. Yester year speak of MDC-Tsvangirayi, MDC Mutambara, MDC MDC 1999 (Job Sikhala led), MDC Alliance, MDC Ncube, and now MDC Chamisa.