CHENGETAI ZVAUYA
Zanu PF and the two warring MDC factions are in the process of selecting parliamentary candidates for the pending council and parliamentary by-elections as they resume old rivalry.
Zimbabwe will have by elections on December 5 to elect councillors and legislators following the recall of members by the MDC-T led for insubordination and failing to recognise the leadership of Thokozani Khupe.
This came after the Supreme Court restored the 2014 structures in the opposition party and made Khupe the acting leader pending the holding of an extraordinary congress.
Khupe has recalled 21 MDC Alliance MPs and over 80 councillors in her battle with MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa.
The recall of councillors has crippled the operations of local authorities amid fears government could move in and appoint commissions to run the affairs of the affected councils.
Zanu PF acting spokesperson Patrick Chinamasa said the ruling party was now on the ground mobilising its structures for the municipal and parliamentary elections and was confident of winning the majority of the seats.
“We are confident that we shall win the elections in particular the municipal council in the urban constituencies as the electorate are seeing for themselves that the councillors from MDC party are not working as some of them are facing corruption charges related to their office,” Chinamasa said.
MDC -T chairperson Morgan Komichi said his party is identifying the candidates for the parliamentary and council elections.
“We are in the process of identifying the candidates and we have many among our party members who are ready to represent us in Parliament and councillors and we have already submitted the list of proportional representatives to ZEC [Zimbabwe Electoral Commission] and we shall also do the same with our councillors.
We are ready for the elections,” Komichi said.
MDC Alliance secretary general Charlton Hwende said his party was ready for the by-elections and most of its members who were recalled either as MPs and councillors were going to contest as they had the mandate of the people who had elected them before their recall from their offices.
“We have the mandate of the people and we are ready for the elections as most of us had not finished their five terms which ended in 2023,” Hwende said, who was also recalled from his constituency.
“Our national executive committee passed a resolution that all the MPs and councillors who were recalled are to seek re-election in the by elections and are going to win without any doubt.”
Among those recalled as MPs include Hwende, Prosper Mutseyami, Happymore Chidziva, Murisi Zwizwai, Thabitha Khumalo and Amos Chibaya.
Recalled MDC Alliance councillors include former Harare City Mayor Herbert Gomba his deputy Enock Mupamawonde, Barnabas Ndira and Denford Ngadziore, among others.
