Mudzuri behind plot to topple Tsvangirai?

By Staff Reporter

HARARE – Former Harare Mayor and senior MDC-T official Elias Mudzuri is allegedly behind a plot to topple party president Morgan Tsvangirai.

A report by the Zimbabwe Independent newspaper claims party officials are holding clandestine meetings to plot Tsvangirai’s ouster through an early congress to be held in March 2014 instead of 2016 when it is due.

The paper says Mudzuri is tipped to take over as President, Samuel Sipepa-Nkomo deputy president, Lovemore Moyo and Tendai Biti will retain their posts as chairperson and secretary-general respectively.

“Former ministers Elton Mangoma and Tapiwa Mashakada are said to be spearheading the quest to “renew and re-invigorate the party” with a shake-up that will see Mangoma as Treasurer, Solomon Madzore (Organising Secretary) and Bulawayo provincial chairperson Gorden Moyo as his deputy.

“There is a growing belief within the party that Tsvangirai no longer has the clout to take the party forward and wrest the presidency from Zanu PF,” a senior party source was quoted as saying.

“He may have lost to (President Robert) Mugabe under highly controversial circumstances, but even some of our backers are of the opinion that he has done all he can do for the party as its leader,” the source added.

But several commentators who spoke to Nehanda Radio said Mudzuri was being used as a sideshow by a faction within the party that was plotting against Tsvangirai.

“These are the same people who used the media to lie to Tsvangirai that Mudzuri wants to topple him in 2010 yet they are the ones plotting his toppling. We know these machinations and the people who think Mudzuri is a threat to their plan of toppling Tsvangirai are planting these stories in the newspapers.”

At the last MDC-T congress in 2011, Elias Mudzuri lost heavily to Nelson Chamisa 2670 to 707 votes for the post of National Organising Secretary. This some say shows that Mudzuri could never be a serious challenger to Tsvangirai, who still enjoys immense support on the ground.

So far exiled Treasurer General Roy Bennett and former Marondera MP Ian Kay have publicly called on Tsvangirai to step down while Mudzuri last week used an opinion piece to suggest that Tsvangirai could step down and become a “Mandela” of the party under several scenarios he suggested.

Two weeks ago Tsvangirai told Nehanda TV during an interview in London that he was not perturbed by any plot against his leadership.

“I actually laugh at it. The overwhelming majority of MDC supporters in my engagement actually know that the issue is not about leadership, the issue is about direction, where we are going.

“If we all accept that this election was rigged. If it was a question of we lost the election (fairly) I would have accepted blame, but I cannot accept blame for something that has been done against me, against us, I am a victim of the rigging.

“There are people who are frustrated, just like people in the diaspora are frustrated, that change has not managed to come, so who do they blame, naturally it’s to blame me, but that’s not the point, this is not a blame game, this is a struggle and this is a setback, that all of us knew we wanted to overcome.”