Mangoma expelled from MDC-T

By Tichaona Sibanda

The deputy treasurer-general of the MDC-T, Elton Mangoma, has been relieved of his post and expelled from the party for gross indiscipline, the party said on Thursday.

Also expelled from the party is Mangoma’s lawyer Jacob Mafume, youth assembly secretary-general Promise Mkwananzi and national executive member Last Maengahama.

Party spokesman Douglas Mwonzora told journalists in Harare the decision to expel Mangoma was unanimous following a meeting of the party’s national executive council, the top decision making body of the MDC-T.

The body sits 190 members but currently has 187, as three of them have died since the last congress. 52 members did not attend Thursday’s meeting, but enough members attended to form a quorum.

Mwonzora said 131 members voted in favour of expelling Mangoma, three abstained and one voted against. Former Mutare mayor Brian James was the only person in the meeting who was against the expulsion of Mangoma.

Two of the three who abstained were Harare province chairman Paul Madzore and Chitungwiza provincial youth chairperson Malvin Mashoko, both of whom are linked to the ‘renewal’ team that has been advocating the ouster of party leader Morgan Tsvangirai.

Tendai Biti, the party secretary-general and an ally of Mangoma, excused himself before voting to attend a court case.

On the suspensions of various provincial executives, Mwonzora said the party has reversed those as the actions were done unconstitutionally.

The expulsion of Mangoma and the other four had been expected following reports that several top leaders had registered their displeasure at the way the movement was treating him with ‘kid gloves’ whilst he was allegedly criticizing Tsvangirai at parallel rallies he had been addressing in the last month. SW Radio Africa