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Freedom Mupanedemo Midlands Bureau
MDC-T party youths in Kwekwe have threatened to confront the party leader Mr Nelson Chamisa for trying to impose Mr Settlement Chikwinya as the party’s candidate for Mbizo constituency.

Mr Chikwinya is a former MDC-T MP for Mbizo who lost the seat after defecting to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) led by Mr Tendai Biti. Mr Chikwinya is eyeing the same seat under the MDC Alliance, but is facing resistance from MDC youths who are accusing him of being a sell-out.

So tense is the situation in Mbizo that MDC-T sent its national deputy organiser Mr Amos Chibaya to try and negotiate the alliance position in Mbizo, but to no avail.

Sources said Mr Chibaya was told off in a tension-filled meeting recently in Mbizo, with party youths threatening to turn violent if the alliance went ahead with its plan to impose Mr Chikwinya.

“The youths hurled insults at Chibaya and threatened to beat him up if he insisted on the position to impose a candidate on the people,” said a source.

“The meeting was abandoned. So, Mr Chamisa sent his foot soldier, Mr Amos Chibaya to clear ground for him, but it seems they are facing resistance. “The youths are threatening to turn violent if he goes ahead and presents Mr Chikwinya as the candidate.”

Some of the party youths interviewed last week said they were against Mr Chikwinya’s candidature.

“He is a sell-out, we don’t want him to represent us anymore, we voted him into power in 2013 under the MDC-T ticket only for him to dump the party,” said one of the MDC-T youths who requested not to be named.

“Now they want to impose him on us again, that won’t happen.”

The youths said they were going to confront Mr Chamisa if he attempted to impose Mr Chikwinya as the party candidate.

Mr Chibaya last week confirmed that there was resistance to Mr Chikwinya’s candidature as the party’s candidate for Mbizo. He also confirmed having convened a meeting last week in Mbizo.

“It’s true there is some resistance in Mbizo on Mr Chikwinya’s candidature as our alliance representative in the elections for Mbizo constituency, but we are still engaging,” he said.