Tsvangirai must be careful

Instead of being exciting times for the politics of Zimbabwe — what is obtaining in both the MDC and Zanu PF — leaves ordinary people with so many questions as to what the future holds for this country.

While Zimbabwe does not start or end with either of the two parties, they, however, remain important to the politics that shape Zimbabwe.

Zanu PF will hold its congress next month amid growing tensions in the party stoked by intense infighting located in the unresolved succession issue.

The MDC yesterday concluded its three-day congress in which the party amended its constitution to weaken the office of the secretary-general and transfer virtually all power to the president, in this case Morgan Tsvangirai.

“Congress resolved to amend the constitution to allow the (MDC) president to be the custodian of the party name, custodian of all party assets, to supervise all in the leadership, to be the party’s chief fundraiser and to suspend National Standing Committee members through the National Council for breach of the party constitution,” a key resolution from the congress said.

“In this regard, the secretary-general shall no longer be responsible ‘for all party affairs in the National Secretariat’ and shall report to the president.”

Such developments give rise to accusations by former Tsvangirai allies who charge the MDC leader is undemocratic.

Surely, this is not the time for Tsvangirai to open himself up to criticism and claims that he wants to ‘Zanunise’ the MDC.

Tsvangirai, as a fighter for democracy, cannot just go against simple tenets of democracy by trying to entrench all the powers to himself.

The fact that his previous two secretaries-general — Welshman Ncube and Tendai Biti — were too powerful as a result of power resident in that office should not be a reason to discard democratic values and principles which the MDC leader and the party itself, espouse.

Many MDC supporters and Zimbabweans looking for alternative parties to vote for in 2018 had hoped something encouraging would come out of the congress.

Instead, the MDC congress has served to underline the growing culture of idolising party leaders to the detriment of the parties themselves.

As Zanu PF hurtles towards its own congress, all well-meaning Zimbabweans, would be hoping that it won’t seal our fate — because surely we are not a cursed people. Daily News