Mwonzora-led MDC-T prefers dialogue than having elections in 2023
By Staff Reporter | Nehanda Politics |
The Douglas Mwonzora-led MDC-T prefers dialogue with President Emmerson Mnangagwa that having elections in 2023, raising suspicions the party is pushing for a government of national unity.
On Sunday, Morgen Komichi, the MDC-T national chairman said the party believed that dialogue with Mnangagwa on reforms was the way to go. Instead of going to elections, Komichi said his party believed the country should concentrate on improving the economy.
“People need reforms, and it will be foolhardy for people to just be programmed. Let’s move away from this programming and see what has made our elections disputable for these last years,” Komichi said.
“We must come to reality and say because we don’t have electoral reforms, the outcome is predetermined and can be manipulated, and it will be stupid for Zimbabweans to go for an election or a programme that they know the outcome is predetermined,” he said.
“The time is now for the people of Zimbabwe to go to the drawing table to say what are the serious issues affecting us, and then we do a process to welcome whoever the winner is.”
He added: “For the last 20 years, people are not concentrating on the economy, and that is why the country is poorer and poorer. Soon after voting, there is a dispute, court challenges, Sadc is involved and people do not benefit from that.
“People want national dialogue, a process that guarantees them better living and is predictable. With the experience of the 2008 dialogue, the 1987 unity dialogue among others, they are positive on the dialogue process to resolve conflict.
“We have a challenge as Zimbabweans right now that we are only two years before elections, but we have never sat down to dialogue over a thing like electoral reforms, and you know our elections have been disputed since time immemorial.
“To me, it will be very unreasonable for us as Zimbabweans to just assume things will be okay on their own without us taking action as far as the pushing for national dialogue is concerned.”
Komichi also said there were negative perceptions regarding the Political Actors Dialogue as a Mnangagwa thing.
“But let us come back and say it was an effort to create a dialogue platform. What can we do as Zimbabweans to make it more friendly and inclusive? Let’s move away from the politics of acrimony,” he said.
On a possible coalition government with Zanu PF, Komichi added: “That will be the product of the dialogue, but what we need is something that will benefit the people of Zimbabwe. Whatever comes of the dialogue that will benefit the people of Zimbabwe will be welcome.”
Zimbabwe is expected to hold harmonised elections in 2023.
Through a March Supreme Court ruling of last year, Mwonzora has already recalled more than half of MDC Alliance MPs from Parliament accusing them of supporting Nelson Chamisa.
Political activist Pride Mkono said MDC-T officials were afraid of losing elections hence they are choosing to avoid them.
“They want to extend their illegal reign in Parliament and council because the writing on the wall is clear that these political upstarts will lose any election anytime. However the bigger agenda is to hand Zanu PF easy victory and time to plan by delaying elections,” he said. Nehanda Radio
