(Last Updated on August 8, 2013 by Editor)
Professor Arthur Mutambara’s MDC faction is having a good time following the crushing defeat of MDC-T and the Professor Welshman Ncube-led MDC in last week’s harmonised elections, saying they foresaw their demise. In a telephone interview yesterday, MDC-M secretary-general Mr Maxwell Zimuto said his party chose not to participate in last week’s elections to avoid embarrassment, which its sister parties were now going through.
“As MDC-M we decided to pull out of the election contest for strategic reasons. We realised that only two parties, Zanu-PF and MDC-T, had realistic chances of winning and we thought it was a good idea to give people, including our supporters, the opportunity to choose between the two,” said Mr Zimuto.
“When other parties were rushing to get into office, Zanu-PF was going out to mobilise people.”
Mr Zimuto said Zanu-PF outfoxed its MDC rivals in the last four years in that, while its counterparts in the dysfunctional inclusive Government enjoyed luxury and forgot about the people, the revolutionary party used every opportunity to reinforce itself and oil its machinery for the elections.
He said: “For the past four years Zanu-PF virtually went in every corner of this country and mingled with every congregation. President Mugabe even went to the apostolic sect but some people were laughing, saying he was desperate yet he knew what he was doing. They also went to the chiefs and engaged everyone to ensure they win the poll. We are therefore not surprised that Zanu-PF romped to victory. We saw it coming but unfortunately our colleagues could not read between the lines.”
Mr Zimuto said the MDCs should preserve their dignity by accepting defeat and warned that continued arguments over the poll outcome would throw the parties into political oblivion.
“I am not in any way dismissing assertions by those who have lost the election but I am simply saying Zanu-PF worked for what it got. If not careful the MDC-T for instance might split by boycotting Government and that will mark the end of opposition politics,” he said.