MDC-T President Douglas Mwonzora has dismissed claims that the party carried out a dubious nomination process ahead of the upcoming congress.
Speaking during a press conference held at the party headquarters after the party secretary for programs and business Norest Marara raised alarm about the nomination, Mwonzora said the process was done in a transparent manner.
Marara declared his interest to run for the party’s top position challenging the incumbent Douglas Mwonzora.
However, Mwonzora claimed no one contested his position.
Marara insists that due process was not followed and therefore approached the court.
Speaking during the press conference Mwonzora said his party was leading by example as far as internal democracy is concerned. Open Parly quotes him as saying:
We have done our nominations in a transparent and robust way.
The MDC is an example of a thriving internal democracy, every position was up for grabs and everybody who wanted any position was free to contest it.
And people did canvas support for the position that they wanted.
Congress is preceded by the nomination process and the nomination process is preceded by setting of the rules governing the internal processes.
Before Congress, we develop rules for the elections these rules are developed by the elections directorate and then presented by the National Council.
Mwonzora said he was glad that Marara took the matter to the High Court where it was dismissed as being not urgent. He said:
We are very happy that Mr Marara took his case to court where people who are not us presided over it.
He added that no one was stopped from contesting the elections saying he was clear that his position was up for grabs and, “I am the only opposition leader who dares to do that.”
Marara is one of the MDC-T candidates who lost in the 26 March by-elections. He is said to have openly told the executive in one meeting that the party performed dismally because Mwonzora was not sellable to the people.