By Political Reporter

… Khupe walks out of the congress

Douglas Mwonzora is the new MDC T president after defeating the then acting President Dr Thokozani Khupe and other two candidates at the chaotic Extra Ordinary Congress (EOC) held at Harare International Conference Centre in Harare yesterday.

Mwonzora, who was contesting the presidential post left vacant after the death of the founding president Morgan Tsvangirai in February 2018, amassed 883 votes while his closest challenger Khupe got a paltry 118 votes. Elias Mudzuri and Morgan Komichi got 14 and nine votes respectively.

In his acceptance speech, Mwonzora said he was going to reach out to the losing candidates, emphasizing that he has special positions for them in that party’s new standing committee.

“When everybody has cooled down we will come together as members of one family, I want to make it clear that the three leaders are part of my leadership plan. This was a contest and not a fight. The fact that we were in the same race, the fact that one succeeded over the others does not make us any better MDC-T members than others. I have tremendous respect for Doctor Thokozani Khupe, Mudzuri and Komichi for the work that they have done for the party during the late Morgan Tsvangirai tenure and after,” said Mwonzora.

Mwonzora said the leadership should now put their differences aside and work together for the good of the MDC T and he reiterated his respect for Khupe, Komichi and Mudzuri for the work they have done for that party.

Meanwhile, there was drama during the EOC as Khupe walked out of the congress venue citing electoral malpractice. The voting process was marred by fistfights, haggling and verbal insults among voters who were not amused with the voting process. Khupe insinuated that the EOC was heavily rigged in favor of Mwonzora and therefore should be aborted.

Khupe went further to write a letter to Mwonzora informing him that he has been suspended from the party for violating some sections of that party’s constitution.

However, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) allowed the voting process to continue after sanity had prevailed.

One delegate who spoke to this publication said reports of the EOC being rigged in favor of Mwonzora were hogwash as the voter’s roll that was used is the one prepared by expelled Organizing Abednego Bhebhe which Khupe was in favor of.

“The voter’s roll which was used was the one compiled by Bhebhe after the Khupe camp refused the one which was supplied by Mwonzora accusing him of rigging and staffing it with names of his backers. The party also agreed to use a supplementary voters roll after it emerged that some known members who were in the 2014 structures were missing in the voters roll. These reports of rigging are nonsensical as they are being spread by loser,” said the delegate.

The MDC T was holding an elective EOC to replace the late leader Tsvangirai who succumbed to cancer of the colon in 2018.