Staff Reporter

In a surprising turn of events, David Coltart, the newly elected Mayor of Bulawayo, confirmed that he had been imposed as the Mayor of Bulawayo by Nelson Chamisa.

Coltart made this revelation during his mayoral acceptance speech on September 11, 2023, leaving many questioning the integrity of the selection process.

"I didn't ask for this position; I thought at the age of 65 that I was nearing retirement. But it was President Chamisa who listened to the citizens of Bulawayo, not just within the CCC but from leadership from other political parties, civic leaders, and church leaders. And it was President Nelson Chamisa who asked me to take up this role," Coltart stated.

This confirmation has raised eyebrows and garnered criticism from various quarters.

 Political commentator, Professor Jonathan Moyo weighed in on the issue saying that it was wrong for Chamisa to handpick Coltart as the mayor.

"Chamisa had pledged that he and his CCC would let communities choose their own representatives for Parliament and for local authorities. Coltart's confirmation that he was imposed by Chamisa exposes the Triple C leader in three ways. Firstly, Chamisa is contemptuous of local communities like Ward 4 residents in Bulawayo, to whom he made a false commitment that they would be free to choose their council candidates, only for him to ignore all their preferences, as he did after the Ward 4 CCC community caucus rejected Coltart.

“Secondly, Chamisa imposed Coltart as the winner of the CCC Ward 4 candidate-selection community caucus when Coltart had not only lost the community selection contest but also when he had come in last in the contest," said Prof. Moyo.

Prof. Moyo emphasized how this demonstrated that Chamisa does not believe in free, fair, and credible elections; instead, he believes in imposing his handpicked candidates, just like he imposed Coltart.

Meanwhile, there are reports that the people of Bulawayo have vowed to sabotage Coltart until his replacement by a Ndebele Mayor.