Amidst a backdrop of political turmoil, the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has been thrown into disarray as infighting engulfs the party. Supporters of CCC leader Sengezo Tshabangu have turned against him, leading to a rupture within the ranks.
The escalating internal conflict comes in the wake of Nelson Chamisa’s departure from the opposition party, prompting Tshabangu to release a statement outlining the party’s position. However, some of his backers have accused him of being captured.
Tshabangu stated that the CCC leadership had collectively decided that power and authority would reside with the national leadership elected at the MDC Alliance Gweru national congress in 2019. However, the CCC steering committee chairperson, Dingilizwe Tshuma, dismissed Tshabangu’s statement, declaring it null and void.
Tshuma argued that the 2019 structure was invalidated by the court rulings that recognized Thokozani Khupe and later Douglas Mwonzora as leaders of the MDC. He accused Tshabangu of being captured, pointing out that the interim steering committee had completely from his statements.
The spokesperson for Tshabangu, Khaliphani Phungeni, expressed concern over the erosion of democracy in Zimbabwe. He emphasized the need for a mature approach and highlighted the importance of dialogue.
“It is a bad day for democracy, one that could have been avoided. We needed an adult in the room, unfortunately, both parties had to take responsibility for the call up because at some stage they talked about negotiations,” he said.
“There was a time when pastors were deployed, and no one is now referring to that dialogue. We should not be this radical with this people’s project.“The SG is saying they are trying to stabilise the party. It’s not all lost, they are trying to negotiate with the change champion-in-chief and we are hopeful that there is still room for negotiations.”
