Freeman Chari Faces Backlash For Saying CCC's "Strategic Ambiguity" Has Failed

Opposition activist,  Freeman Chari who is also a software engineer based in the United States of America, has been criticised by some CCC sympathisers for suggesting that the party’s “strategic ambiguity” or failure to have structures (party positions occupied by members elected at a congress), a constitution, and an ideology, has been its weakness.

In a recent thread on the social media site X (formerly Twitter), Chari said strategic ambiguity has destroyed accountability in CCC as well as the abdication of responsibilities. He said:

Initially we thought people were carrying over their responsibilities from MDC-A but slowly the idea of a formless entity was pushed. This had 2 issues. There were no responsibilities and there was no accountability. Everything became centralized and inefficient.

The impact of this was there for all to see. Nobody could move unless directed by the only person who seemed to have a position – Nelson [Chamisa]. Those who had critical responsibilities started abdicating and those gaps could be seen. Within CCC people spoke about this in hushed tones.

Responding to Chari’s no-holds-barred criticism of CCC and its leader Nelson Chamisa, UK-based lawyer and political commentator Brighton Mutebuka said it was a strategic miscalculation for Chari to reveal CCC’s inner workings on a public platform. He said:

The more the strategic position one occupies or the role one plays, the greater the responsibility towards showing discretion when communicating sensitive information relating to the organisation.

The crucial roles that you have played demand the highest levels of emotional regulation & social responsibility.

The regime & its acolytes will naturally celebrate & harvest as much as possible from the strategic information that has been freely & unexpectedly disclosed on a public forum.

It’s an unfortunate development for one who has invested so much for the opposition cause – and, for that reason, is directly in the line of fire from the regime.

It’s tantamount to inadvertently campaigning for the regime and does not provide any constructive solutions for addressing the highlighted issues…

To then so publicly berate the leader of the very opposition you were pitching for & disclosing sensitive information you were privy to in the process would have been a boon to the regime, while disappointing millions of opposition voters who had rallied behind your initiatives.

It’s yet another tragic example of the opposition movement scoring own goals and showing an unfortunate tendency to self-destruct at crucial points in the journey towards seeking democratic change.

Tich Gwanzura wrote: “(It also has the effect of transmitting the message that the purveyor of that information has given up & has no regard about the consequences of their disclosure.) Same same as saying I am giving up.“

Charles Magagada said: “I can pick all your points but 9 strikes most. Zanu elements discuss sensitive information internally yet the opposition activists can shoot anyhow and claim it’s democracy? Some even have the privilege to directly conduct the responsible authorities but choose otherwise.“

After President spokesperson George Charamba said Chari’s X thread is “a must read” for people who want to understand the “confusion in factions around Chamisa and CCC”, Solomon Haruzibwi said: “Probably the reason why I would never tweet anything that gives Charamba an orgasm no matter how frustrated I get.“

More: Pindula News