HARARE – The internal power struggle within the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has taken a dramatic turn, with reports surfacing on Sunday that self-styled party secretary general Sengezo Tshabangu has fired interim leader Welshman Ncube.
This move has been met with swift and forceful denials from the party’s information department, which has challenged Tshabangu’s legitimacy to make such a decision.
Tshabangu, a relatively unknown figure before his rise to prominence, has become a controversial figure within the CCC. He has been at the centre of a series of recalls against elected CCC MPs and councillors, claiming they had ceased to be party members. These recalls, aided by favourable court rulings, ultimately led to then party leader Nelson Chamisa’s resignation, citing party infiltration by “the enemy”.
Tshabangu has now shifted his focus to a new target: the party faction led by interim leader Welshman Ncube. In a statement, Tshabangu claimed to have dismissed Ncube, citing his authority as secretary general.
However, the CCC’s information department, led by spokesperson Willias Madzimure, has vehemently denied Tshabangu’s claims, labelling them as “false, flawed and self-serving propaganda designed to sow despondency among party members.”
Madzimure dismissed the purported dismissal of Ncube, stating that the party leadership remains firmly in control. He challenged Tshabangu’s legitimacy as an official who could make decisions on behalf of the party, claiming that the appointment of Tshabangu as interim secretary general was “patently and self-evidently false.”
“The premise of the opinion that Sengezo Tshabangu was appointed by the meeting of the National Council of 22 January 2022 to the position of Interim Secretary General is patently and self-evidently false,” Madzimure stated.
“The Party leadership challenges the authors, if they in fact exist, of that opinion to produce the resolution of the National Council that made the purported appointment.”
Madzimure further challenged Tshabangu to produce any evidence of his appointment or any evidence that he had performed the functions of the secretary general’s office during the period between January 2022 and the commencement of the recalls.
The CCC leadership row comes at a time when the government has announced the disbursement of funds to Zanu PF and the CCC under the Political Parties Finance Act. This Act grants financial assistance to political parties that achieve a minimum 5 percent vote in national elections.
The CCC leadership battle has raised serious concerns about the party’s internal cohesion and its ability to effectively challenge the ruling Zanu PF party. The party’s information department has vowed to engage with all members and officers to restore order and transparency within the party.
“The CCC is too big a party which before the recalls constituted more than a third of Members of Parliament and controlled more than 90% of all urban Councils. It will be a travesty of justice for anyone to assume that he can put the structures and organs of the party into his pocket,” Madzimure said.
