By Wisdom Mumera
Special Advisor to the President, Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa is facing a solitary walk down the path into the political sunset after a debilitating loss in the Norton legislative election held on Monday.
The war veteran suffered a humiliating loss to incumbent and independent legislator Temba Mliswa coming third behind MDC Alliance candidate Samuel Matemera.
According to ZEC results Mliswa polled 16 857 votes, Matemera got 7 850 whilst Mutsvangwa was a distant third with a paltry 4 255 votes.
The loss is made even greater by the fact that Mutsvangwa allegedly used his office and standing to muscle out primary election winner Langton Mutendereki who had defeated him.
Speaking after announcement of the results Mliswa said the results were an endorsement of his work ethic and the triumph of sense partisan and emotional voting patterns elsewhere.
“Norton has shown political maturity to choose development over simply voting according to party lines. Parties have already shown their defective nature in their failure to really push for people issues.”
“Most of the time party members are involved in internal infractions and factional battles, reducing their effectiveness as representatives of the electorate”
Mutsvangwa is on record warning President Emmerson Mnangagwa that the latter would lose the elections if he were not allowed to stand for the Norton seat.
The election results have set up a delicate scenario in which Mutsvangwa will have to politically survive on the benevolence of others granting him positions either the government or party structures.
With some political analysts suspecting bad blood between Mutsvangwa and Mnangagwa it remains to be seen whether he will survive long as a political hanger-on.
He has already been rumoured to have lost respect among the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association members with a diplomatic scandal unravelling some months ago when he wasn’t allowed to address them during a meeting with Mnangagwa at City Sports Centre.
