Published by the government of Zimbabwe
6 November 2007
Harare — As Mr Morgan Tsvangirai loses control of his MDC camp amid a damaging rift, it emerged yesterday that former Gweru mayor Mr Patrick Kombayi has confiscated some of the faction's vehicles, saying they were being abused.
Sources within the troubled MDC camp revealed that Mr Kombayi, who is the faction's Midlands provincial secretary, took control of the new Isuzu trucks in Gweru and Bulawayo, as the crisis engulfing the opposition intensifies.
The exact number of vehicles could not be ascertained yesterday, although Chronicle has it on good authority that the two MDC factions have been given a total of 800 new cars to use during the 2008 synchronised elections. Sources said the vehicles which Mr Kombayi has taken control of were imported through people close to him, but the former mayor denied this. "The cars were brought from overseas after being sourced by Mr Kombayi's son who is based abroad," said a well-placed source.
"Apparently, Kombayi confiscated the vehicles because he is no longer seeing eye-to-eye with other senior party members including Gweru Mayor Mr Sesil Zvidzai," said an MDC official who requested anonymity. Mr Zvidzai and Mr Kombayi are locked in a fierce wrangle over the control of a group of youths that is accused of perpetrating political violence -- the so-called Democratic Resistance Committee. Houses belonging to some officials in Gweru were stoned when violence pitting youths belonging to the Kombayi and Zvidzai factions broke out.
Mr Zvidzai is the opposition's national secretary for local government. Contacted for comment, Mr Kombayi argued that he had the right to keep the vehicles because they were not being properly used. He disclosed that rowdy party members, instead of waiting for the 2008-election campaign programme, were abusing the vehicles. Mr Kombayi denied that the vehicles were imported under his name.
"Party cars should be kept by party leaders instead of letting people abuse the vehicles. There is nothing wrong with that but I deny that the vehicles were shipped using my name. That's false," he said.
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