THE National Mine Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe (NMWUZ) has been rocked by a leadership wrangle which has split the union into two camps, one led by founding president Tinashe Mugwira and another by Zvishavane-based Ndodana Sithole.
BLESSED MHLANGA
The two factions have now taken their battle for control of the union to the High Court where the Mugwira-led faction is seeking to have Sithole and his group barred from acting on behalf of the union.
In his founding affidavit filed under case number HC 6277/13, Mugwira claims that Sithole and his team held an illegal congress in Bulawayo on June 29.
“This application seeks to have the purported congress held by respondents (Sithole) on June 29 at Bulawayo be declared unlawful and that respondents be barred from holding themselves out to be NMWUZ office bearers,” part of the application reads.
Mugwira, who is represented by Mbizo, Muchadehama and Makoni legal practitioners, claims that Sithole, Onisimo Mutambara, Sylvester Mushaike and Ernest Gumbo, who are respondents in the matter, had no authority to call for a congress as they were mere committee members.
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“Respondents had no right to hold a congress of NMWUZ because according to our constitution, congress can only be called for by the secretary-general, who was William Seremani. Sithole, who called for the Bulawayo congress, was a mere committee member,” that application reads.
In his opposing affidavit, Sithole maintains that he is the legitimate president of the union.
“Tinashe Mugwira is not the president of the applicant and neither does he have the authority to depose an affidavit on behalf of NMWUZ,” part of Sithole’s opposing affidavit reads.