Nelson Chamisa to contest in Crucial Presidential Election

A Movement for Democratic Change consultative meeting has resolved to have MDC-T vice president Nelson Chamisa as the party’s 2018 presidential candidate.

If endorsed by the National Council as the presidential candidate, the 40 year-old who has a Bachelors in Business Administration in Marketing, a Bachelors of Science (Hon) in Political Science, a Masters Degree in International Relations and Diplomacy, a Law Degree and a Degree in Theology, will face President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the presidential poll.

In a meeting attended by 641 party supporters, including vice president Elias Mudzuri, several senior officials and others, also resolved that the National Council should nominate Chamisa as the acting MDC-T president until 2019.

Minutes of the meeting indicate that the MDC-T consultative meeting further resolved that the National Council, which is the highest decision-making body outside congress, should reaffirm the support of MDC Alliance following the death of party leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who succumbed to cancer.

The MDC consultative meeting also resolved “to continue engaging party leadership who have a different view and foster unity amongst the leadership and to start candidate selection process in all constituencies and wards excluding those allocated to other MDC Alliance partners starting with consensus.”

These resolutions will be tabled before MDC-T National Council meeting to be held anytime next week.

Some top officials who did not attend the meeting included MDC-T vice president Thokozani Khupe, chairman Lovemore Moyo, organizing secretary Abednico Bhebhe and several others said to be opposed to the MDC-T Alliance and Chamisa’s nomination to be the party’s acting president.

Apart from Chamisa and Mudzuri, other senior MDC-T officials that attended the meeting included Deputy National Chairperson Morgan Komichi, Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora, Deputy Secretary General Pauline Mpariwa, Treasurer General Theresa Makone, Deputy Treasurer Charlton Hwende, Deputy Organizer Amos Chibaya, Deputy Information and Publicity Thabitha Khumalo, Secretary for elections Murisi Zvizwai, National Youth Chairperson Happymore Chidziva and National Women Chairperson Lynette Karenyi-Kore.