Tsvangirai stages coup on Mutambara
The Zimbabwe Times
August 22, 2008
By Our Correspondent
THE Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has re****tedly secured the
sup****t of eight legislators aligned to a rebel MDC faction led by Dr
Arthur Mutambara.
Insiders in both the Tsvangirai led MDC party and the breakaway MDC
faction disclosed on Friday that the opposition party which ended
Zanu-PF leader Robert Mugabe's majority in parliament after routing the
former ruling party in the March general elections had made a major
breakthrough by securing the sup****t of eight disgruntled MP' belonging
to the Mutambara faction.
Without revealing the names of the legislators the MDC sources said the
MPs aligned to Mutambara had assured them of their vote during next
week's elections to choose the powerful posts of Speaker of Parliament
and Deputy Speaker.
"We are together in this struggle. We can never be in bed with Zanu-PF
at the expense of our colleagues whom we identify with," said one of
the legislators concerned.
The Tsvangirai led MDC has chosen its Matobo MP and the party's
national chairman Lovemore Moyo as its candidate for the post of
Speaker while the smaller MDC faction has picked up former Gwanda
legislator Paul-Themba Nyathi who lost the March parliamentary
elections to a Tsvangirai loyalist. Zanu-PF has not yet named its
choice amid allegations that the former ruling party will sup****t a
Mutambara nominee.
Both Tapiwa Mashakada, the spokesperson of the Tsvangirai led faction
and Edwin Mushoriwa, his counterpart in the rebel faction could not be
reached for comment by The Zimbabwe Times.
If the Mutambara affiliated MPs choose to vote for Moyo on Monday, this
would be an indication of growing rebellion in the party. Already most
of the MPs representing constituencies in Matabeleland have threatened
to ditch Mutambara if he strikes any power-sharing deal with Mugabe
while excluding Tsvangirai.
Some of the 10 MPs belonging to the breakaway Mutambara faction reacted
angrily last week to re****ts of a secret deal between their leader and
Mugabe.
The mainstream MDC led by Tsvangirai has 100 MPs, while Zanu-PF has 99.
Former Zanu-PF member and former Minister of Information, Jonathan Moyo
holds the remaining seat as independent MP for Tsholotsho North
constituency. He won the seat in the March election after sealing a
deal with the main MDC whereby that party would not nominate a
candidate in that constituency. But Moyo now appears to have turned his
back on the MDC in favour of a close relation****p with Zanu-PF once
again.
Although some of Mutambara's officials hastened to deny any such deal
had been signed, the legislators all representing constituencies in
Matabeleland, distanced themselves from any signing of a power-sharing
deal between Mutambara and Mugabe behind the back of Tsvangirai.
The State-owned Herald newspaper, which is the government's official
mouthpiece, has consistently re****ted that Mugabe and Mutambara signed
a power sharing deal after Tsvangirai walked out of the talks last
week. The newspaper maintains that the signing would pave the way for a
government of national unity between Mugabe and the Mutambara MDC.
However, legislators aligned to the Mutambara breakaway faction, who
are mostly from Matabeleland South and North provinces have warned that
they will not work with Mugabe if Mutambara signed any deal with the
octogenarian leader in the absence of Tsvangirai.
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