…Urges candidates to liaise and resolve the matter
Emmanuel Chitsika
CCC leader Nelson Chamisa said the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leadership admits responsibility over Masvingo urban ward 4 candidacy impasse that has led to confusion after two candidates successfully filed nomination papers.
Addressing thousands of CCC supporters at Rujeko grounds in Masvingo on March 20, Chamisa said the leadership shoulders the blame because they are the ones who signed nomination papers for the candidates.
“We acknowledge the mistake as leadership. We are the ones who signed the papers for both candidates. Next time, the responsibility of signing nomination papers would be limited to a specific individual not every person.
“We will make sure a specific individual is given the task of signing the documents to avoid these situations that lead to confusion,” said Chamisa.
He went on to urge the candidates to swallow their pride and engage each other to resolve the matter as he emphasised that he does not take a side on who should be considered ahead of the other but citizens will make a choice in the ballot box.
“Baba ndichengaose manhanga hapana risina mhodzi (I am a leader who does not take sides and would welcome everyone to the party). If you failed to resolve the matter on your own, then you have to go back to the drawing board and solve the matter.
“We do not want confusion at CCC. We want love, oneness and our things smoothly move forward that way,” said Chamisa.
There was a chaotic scene however leading to the parading of candidates by Chamisa as he concluded his speech as a defiant Thokozile Muchuchuti charged towards the stage before being tripped to the ground by some unruly supporters and Chamisa had to call for order.
“Order vana Mai (mothers) order. All those who do not want order, can you please leave this gathering immediately;” he added.
The double candidate impasse in ward 4 had dragged on for so long and Muchuchuti had on a number of occasions taken her rival Aleck Tabe to court for victimizing her since the nomination court sitting on January 26.
The battle to contest ward 4 local authority elections began after two candidates propped up in the CCC with Muchuchuti declining to bow down to pressure mounted by local party supporters and allegedly leadership pressurizing her to withdraw her candidature to pave way for Tabe.
