The Sunday News
Lungile Tshuma Sunday News Correspondent
FORMER Finance Minister Mr Tendai Biti is reportedly going to lead a new party that is going to be formed by his MDC Renewal and MDC which will “have a new name, new logo and constitution”, after an elective congress slated for July next year, Sunday News has learnt.Sources close to the development revealed that on 30 November the two parties would sign a “Re-Unification Agreement”.
Professor Lovemore Madhuku’s National Constitutional Assembly party, the source said, was also likely to be part of the new party and would also participate in the elective congress.
“Biti is going to lead the party being deputised by (Professor) Welshman Ncube. (Prof) Lovemore Madhuku is likely to be given the secretary-general post and (Dr) Gorden Moyo might take the organising secretary with (Mr) Nhlanhla Dube assuming the party spokesperson position,” said a source that preferred to remain anonymous.
“These positions will come into effect after the congress but this is the proposed structure. There is also a plan to give (Ms) Priscilla Misihairambwi Mushonga the chairperson position but that has not been finalised because (Dr) Samuel Sipepa Nkomo is also eyeing that position.
“The memorandum specifies that structures can be made through elections or compromise. This means that leaders can sit down and agree on positions, as is the case now, as going for elections can cause problems or create divisions.”
The Sunday News is in possession of a working document titled: “the 12-point guidelines on the re-unification agreement between MDC renewal and MDC”.
The document, which states that there is going to be a signing of the re-unification agreement, spells out how the party will be organised prior to the congress.
“Prior to the re-unification congress the new party will be co-led by the leadership from both parties from national to district level. Thus there will be co-presidents, co-chairs, co-secretary generals, co-director generals, co-organisers and the co-chairing of all the other elected portfolio positions,” read the guidelines.
“The new party will have a new name, a new logo and constitution which shall be adopted at the elective congress. Until congress, the parties will have joint programmes but will also continue to have separate programmes as separate parties.
“The integration committees led by co-chairs shall attend to the merger through compromise or elections of the structures. The merger of the structures and congress itself shall be done on the principles of compromise, accommodation, equity, fairness and inclusivity.”
MDC spokesperson Mr Nhlanhla Dube confirmed that the parties were going to sign the re-unification agreement and hold a joint congress later. He, however, denied that there had been some agreements on how the party would be structured.
“We hope that when the road map is successful the re-unification agreement can be signed by the end of the month. The signing of the agreement depends on how the negotiations will be adopted and finalised but the proposed timeline is that by the end of the month we should be signing the agreement,” Mr Dube said.
“We have not discussed the issue of positions because the most important issue has been that the country comes first before individual interest.”
Prof Ncube, a handful of legislators and other officials broke away from the MDC-led by Mr Morgan Tsvangirai following a clash over the participation in senatorial elections in October 2005.
Mr Biti who assumed Prof Ncube’s post of secretary general, left the Tsvangirai formation early this year following violence by pro-Tsvangirai youths who assaulted the then party’s deputy treasurer, Mr Elton Mangoma, who had asked Morgan Tsvangirai to consider resigning as an option in order to save the party from total collapse.
Mr Tsvangirai and Prof Ncube performed dismally during the July 2013 harmonised elections getting 33.94 and 2.68 percent of the presidential vote respectively, compared to President Mugabe’s 61.09 percent.
“The new party will have a new name, a new logo and constitution which shall be adopted at the elective congress. Until congress, the parties will have joint programmes but will also continue to have separate programmes as separate parties.
“The integration committees led by co-chairs shall attend to the merger through compromise or elections of the structures. The merger of the structures and congress itself shall be done on the principles of compromise, accommodation, equity, fairness and inclusivity.”
MDC spokesperson, Mr Nhlanhla Dube, confirmed that the parties were going to sign the re-unification agreement and hold a joint congress later. He, however, denied that there had been some agreements on how the party would be structured.
“We hope that when the road map is successful the re-unification agreement can be signed by the end of the month. The signing of the agreement depends on how the negotiations will be adopted and finalised but the proposed timeline is that by the end of the month we should be signing the agreement,” Mr Dube said.
“We have not discussed the issue of positions because the most important issue has been that the country comes first before individual interest.”
Prof Ncube, a handful of legislators and other officials broke away from the MDC-led by Mr Morgan Tsvangirai following a clash over the participation in senatorial elections in October 2005.
Mr Biti who assumed Prof Ncube’s post of secretary general, left the Tsvangirai formation early this year following violence by pro-Tsvangirai youths who assaulted the then party’s deputy treasurer, Mr Elton Mangoma, who had asked Morgan Tsvangirai to consider resigning as an option in order to save the party from total collapse.
Mr Tsvangirai and Prof Ncube performed dismally during the July 2013 harmonised elections getting 33,94 and 2,68 percent of the presidential vote respectively, compared to President Mugabe’s 61,09 percent.
