HARARE – The Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) is in turmoil as its self-imposed Secretary General, Sengezo Tshabangu, has initiated a new round of recalls targeting Harare Mayor Ian Makone, his deputy Kudzai Kadzombe, and seven other city councillors.
These moves are further splintering the country’s main opposition party.
In a letter dated November 7, 2023, sent to Local Government minister Winston Chitando, Tshabangu claimed that the targeted councillors “have ceased to be members of the Citizens Coalition for Change.”
The list of councillors reportedly expelled from the party includes Mayor Ian Makone (Ward 18), Deputy Mayor Kudzai Kadzombe (Ward 41), Denford Ngadziore (Ward 16), Lovejoy Chitegu (Ward 36), and Samuel Gwenzi (Ward 5).
Additionally, proportional representation councillors Chido Hamauswa, Tariboyi Sabina, Florence Cheza, and Fadzai Matimba were also targeted.
Tshabangu: the judge, jury and executioner?
These recalls follow the recent ousting of 14 party MPs and councillors across different regions of the country, a move attributed to the controversial politician Sengezo Tshabangu.
Tshabangu insists that the CCC representatives being targeted were imposed by party leader Nelson Chamisa during the community consensus candidate selection process earlier this year, which was used to choose party representatives for the August 2023 elections.
Critics argue that Chamisa used this unique substitution for party primaries to purge some party adversaries in favor of loyalists.
The recalls are seen as an attempt to weaken the opposition and move towards a one-party state, attributed to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government.
These internal disputes continue to shake the CCC, and it remains to be seen how the party will respond to these latest recalls and the increasing divisions within its ranks.
