APA-Harare (Zimbabwe) Zimbabwe’s main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has vowed to fight Monday’s announcement by parliament that 15 of its members have been recalled from the National Assembly by a person the party says is not one of its officials.
Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda notified the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) on Monday of 15 vacancies in the lower house following the recalling of opposition legislators by Sengezo Tshabangu who claimed to be CCC interim secretary general.
Little-known Tshabangu last week wrote to Mudenda withdrawing 15 CCC members of parliament (MPs) and 17 councillors on grounds they had ceased to be members of the opposition party.
CCC spokesperson Promise Mkwananzi accused Mkwananzi of being a functio the ruling ZANU PF.
“We will defend our right to vote, our freedom to choose, our constituency and our democracy with everything that we have got. It cannot and will not be business as usual,” Mkwananzi said.
He added: “There comes a time where one has to draw a line in the sand, stand up & defend their dignity. Such a time has come.”
He, however, did not specify the kind of action the party was going to take.
In an earlier letter to Parliament on Monday before Mudenda announced the recall of the MPs, CCC leader Nelson Chamisa had insisted that Tshabangu was not a member of the party, describing him as a “huge fraud”.
“Sengezo Tshabangu is not a member of CCC and as such cannot provide, avail, or adduce evidence of any such membership as his name does not appear on any of CCC street or village registers of any district, in any province, as administered by the CCC Bureau of Organising,” Chamisa said.
The recall means that ZEC would call for 15 by-elections over the next few months to replace the CCC MPs.
JN/APA