Sikhala Launches New Political Movement

Former Zengeza West MP, Job Sikhala, who launched the now-defunct MDC-99 party after leaving the main MDC nearly two decades ago, has launched yet another political movement.

Addressing the media in Harare on Thursday, Sikhala said his new political movement will be broad-based with civic society, students and the church being involved. He said:

We are not here to pronounce the emergence of a political organization but a broad-based mass democratic movement for everyone in the advancement of the mass democratic struggle in the fashion of the United Democratic Front (UDF) of the 1980s in apartheid South Africa.

This is motivated by the remembrance of the great ideals held by many Zimbabweans who perished during the period of the liberation struggle, Gukurahundi and those who died since the resuscitation of the goals and aspirations of the mass democratic struggle in February 1999.

Sikhala also announced an end to his association with the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) which he described as a “carcass”.

He becomes the latest high-profile figure to leave CCC after Nelson Chamisa, the founding party resigned late last month.

Sikhala said the new movement will seek to correct the shortcomings of the MDC which was launched in 1999. He said:

The weakness of our 1999 approach was that the meeting of the constituent bodies was heavy at the top with only the ZCTU having grassroots structures.

It was the meeting of constituent bodies at the national leadership level with less participation from the shop floor and village level which eventually led to the clash of egos. Zimbabwe needs a way forward to answer the national question, of where to from here.

The way forward on what should be done from here will come from the people through a Mass Nationwide Democratic Consultative Process. The national consultative process will convene Nationwide Democratic Consultative Conventions.

The Consultative process will involve all important constituent bodies, that is, the general masses of our people, labour, students, traditional leaders, churches, civic society, businesspersons, professionals, residents’ associations, informal traders, women clubs, farmers, peasants, youth organizations, progressive political organizations, war veterans, war collaborators, artists, corporate business sector, and people living with disabilities.

Critics have warned Sikhala that his decision to launch a new political initiative will mark the end of his political career and he “has no national political appeal” and should rather focus on his family and his law firm.

More: Pindula News