Khupe Barred From Attending POLAD Meetings

The acting president of the Supreme Court-created MDC-T, Thokozani Khupe, has been barred from attending Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) meetings until she gets a fresh mandate from the party’s congress.

The party’s acting deputy national chairperson Morgen Komichi told the Daily News that Khupe cannot continue with POLAD because the party which initially seconded her to the negotiations is different from the one she is now leading. Said Komichi:

For now, she cannot continue with POLAD because we have agreed that the decision on who we engage with politically should be subjected to party structures, preferably congress.

Remember that the party that seconded her to Parliament is not the same party that she is leading. The president takes instructions from the party that she leads and that party has not seconded her to POLAD.

However, responding to Komichi’s assertion, Khupe’s spokesperson, Khaliphani Phugeni, who also doubles as the party’s information secretary said Khupe could not attend recent POLAD meetings as she is preoccupied with preparations for the extra-ordinary congress directed by the Supreme Court.

An MDC-T national standing committee member told the Daily News that some officials who are eyeing the party’s presidency came up with the idea for Khupe to cease participation in POLAD. The official is quoted as having said:

Remember Komichi, (Douglas) Mwonzora and (Elias) Mudzuri all want to be president and they do not want to be labelled Zanu PF like what is happening to Khupe.

They want to be seen as genuine opposition leaders who are not tied to Mnangagwa’s apron strings so they are the people who came up with the idea.

More: Daily News