Source: MDC reaches out to Majome – DailyNews Live
STAFF WRITER 14 May 2018
HARARE – MDC national chairperson Morgen Komichi has said Harare West
legislator Jessie Majome, who has opted out of the primary election race
citing irregularities, jumped the gun because she did not wait for the
selection of candidates that took place in Harare yesterday.
Majome, who is hugely popular in her constituency, on Friday last week
announced that she was withdrawing from the MDC primary race where she was
set to lock horns with microbiologist and former student leader Joana
Mamombe.
She alleged that the party leadership had manipulated the party’s election
guidelines.
“I have noted several factors that I cannot ignore, which I have
highlighted to my party which I believe, honestly, constitute manipulation
of my party guidelines towards a fair outcome to the extent in my view
regrettably so, that the will of bona fide and genuine Harare Westerners
would be lost in that process,”
Majome said during her press conference.
Her withdrawal from the race left many in anger as she is highly regarded
especially by people from her constituency as well as the nation at large
for her contributions in Parliament, while her challenger is a relative
newcomer.
However, Komichi, who is in charge of the MDC internal elections,
yesterday said the party will not impose candidates and there was never a
deliberate ploy to elbow Majome from the race.
“We are firstly looking at consensus among candidates. And we have
discovered that we have so many areas which can be dealt internally, we
can’t impose people.
“We first want to hear people’s views, we cannot impose candidates but we
must engage through negotiations.
“We cannot have one person stopping a process but the truth is she
pre-empted our strategy. We are supposed to look into Harare today and
determine who goes to proportional representatives if both candidates are
popular,” said Komichi.
With Majome now under pressure to stand as an independent candidate,
Komichi said the MDC was keen to have her back.
“We are aware of a possibility of independent candidates but she
pre-empted our strategy, we were concerned by her fate and still are.
“We must bring harmony among our people; we cannot just protect one
person.
“We have many areas where people have agreed on consensus, we have people
withdrawing from the race through voluntary processes,” Komichi said.
He said there will be through with the selection process by May 18.
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