The Mthwakazi Republic Party (MRP) National Executive Committee (NEC) has labelled some of its members who announced on Monday that they have disbanded the committee as power hungry and at the service of Zanu PF.
The NEC leadership claimed the ouster of Mqondisi Moyo as party president was hatched a long time ago but had previously failed as the party weeded out two officials some time ago, who after failing to dethrone him returned to Zanu PF.
These sentiments follow a press conference held by MRP members on Monday where they ‘fired’ their president and dissolved the entire NEC for failing to lead and ignoring structures.
The MRP members appointed Mbonisi Gumbo as their interim spokesperson, who claimed their constitution allowed them to dissolve NEC for poor performance and that they were to elect an interim leadership on October 1, 2023, before their national congress in April next year.
Read: https://cite.org.zw/mthwakazi-republic-party-members-fire-president-and-dissolve-nec/
However, the ‘previous’ national spokesperson, Velile Moyo, accused Gumbo of making “fake and dubious claims.”
Moyo said NEC had been monitoring Gumbo since December 2022 when he ascribed himself status of an elder in MRP yet had left the party three times and on each occasion rushed to social media to settle his scores.
“The last time Gumbo was in MRP structures was sometime last year when he was a committee member in the NEC. He left saying the position was too junior for him given that he was a founding member,” claimed the spokesperson.
“Around January 2023, Gumbo told his accomplices that by the time Zimbabwe holds its elections in August 2023 he would have ascended to the position of MRP president.”
Moyo claimed Gumbo tried to “entice” the MRP leader to fire the whole NEC and replace them with names he suggested.
“Gumbo also requested to be assigned to the most influential position in the party,” said the spokesperson who added the party had issues with three members: Matabeleland South Information and Publicity Secretary – Khethani Nxebalendoda Ndlovu, Matabeleland North Chairperson -Thembisani Mfulongashi Mpofu and party youth chairperson -Chilumbo Mudenda.
“We already knew they wanted to dissolve NEC.”
Moyo said NEC held a meeting on September 10, 2023, with all their provinces including the South Africa Charter, Botswana North and South Charter but could not address all the agendas of the day and they adjourned to September 17, 2023.
However, Moyo said on September 9, 2023, Gumbo, who was in South Africa issued a statement that “if President Mqondisi Moyo refused to fire NEC, he would be part of those who fired them.”
Moyo added before the September 17 meeting, Mpofu and Mudenda issued statements threatening other members, forcing NEC to cancel the meeting due to security reasons.
Despite NEC’s cancellation, Moyo said Mpofu insisted on holding that meeting and a press conference afterwards.
“They held their meeting at a bush in Pumula North near Pumula High School, along Methodist Road. Their meeting was poorly attended with less than 20 members,” said the spokesperson, claiming Gumpo came from South Africa to lead Monday’s “dubious” press conference.
“Gumbo is not even a party official.”
Moyo questioned how Gumbo and other party members who amounted to 13 could dissolve the whole NEC when they “were not even a fully constituted body.”
He claimed Gumbo also lied they had the backing of MRP provincial structures yet some have distanced themselves.
“We have their audios distancing themselves. One of them is Sithembakuye Nyoni, acting National Women’s League Chairperson who is from Tsholotsho but was stunned to hear her name abused by desperate and power-hungry so-called leaders,” Moyo said.
“To prove these people are selfish and heartless, they included Midlands Province Secretary Lovemore Nkomazana who was involved in a road accident two weeks ago and he is still hospitalised.”
Moyo labelled Gumbo as fake, which was “a big shame and embarrassment to MRP and their revolutionary cause.”
“Gumbo went further to castigate the decision by the NEC on international lobbying, yet he is aware that MRP implemented this two years ago,” he said referring to a recent petition MRP submitted to SADC.
Gumbo had said the timing of the petition was wrong because the focus was on flawed elections, but the MRP spokesperson said the leadership announced that SADC responded requesting for all the necessary evidence why Mthwakazi people were seeking for self-determination.
“This is the reason we collected over 25 000 signatures for international submission,” Moyo said.
Moyo further claimed that Zanu PF was behind this act citing how the ruling party had orchestrated the 2005 MDC split between the late Morgan Tsvangirai and Professor Welshman Ncube.
“In our situation, the three – Gumbo, Mpofu and Mudenda – have been advised to split MRP as to derail the international lobbying programme that NEC through president Mqondisi Moyo is doing,” said the spokesperson.
“We are aware that Zanu PF gave them assurance that if NEC takes the matter to the court, the courts will rule in their favour. As such the MRP NEC leadership will not waste its time challenging such a useless matter in Zimbabwe courts. We know at the end of the day that Zanu PF would have won.”
The spokesperson urged party members, supporters, and stakeholders to remain calm, saying MRP was “being tested and graduating to another level of the revolution.”
