By Wezhira Munya
The Gutu West by-election will be held on November 11, 2023.
This by-election was triggered by the death of the independent candidate, Mr. Christopher Mutonhori Rwodzi, due to a road accident. Rwodzi was previously fired from Zanu PF and was contesting under the Independent for ED banner.
Some of Rwodzi’s relatives and Gutu West residents alleged that he, Rwodzi, was killed in a road accident by his political enemies.
Rwodzi was more popular than the Zanu PF candidate, John Paradza. Rwodzi was a former Zanu PF member and the husband of Chirumanzu South Zanu PF member of parliament, Babra Rwodzi.
Due to Rwodzi’s death a few days before the August 23, 2023 harmonized elections, the Gutu West parliamentary election was canceled.
The Gutu West by-election nomination court is set for October 10, 2023, at 10 am in the Masvingo Magistrates Court.
Zimbabwe Election Commission Masvingo Provincial Elections Officer Pudurai Zex Zirabada will preside over the nomination process.
Three candidates from three different political parties and an independent candidate successfully filed their nomination papers to contest the Gutu West by-election set for November 11, 2023.
The following candidates will compete in Gutu West: President Nelson Chamisa’s Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) candidate is Ephream Morudu; Sebastian Martin Mudzingwa is an independent candidate; Professor Maduku’s National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) will be represented by Robson Kurwa; and Zanu PF has fielded John Paradza as its candidate.
Here is the work experience of the Gutu West candidates:
– CCC candidate Morudu is a decorated war veteran and a former school educator.
– Mudzingwa, an independent candidate, is a relative of Rwodzi, a businessperson, and the Mudzanapamwe Village Head in Serima.
– NCA candidate Kurwa is a carpenter by profession and a Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) Eastern Region board member.
– Lastly, Paradza is the deputy secretary of the Zanu PF national youth league and is a former parliamentarian.
CCC Gutu West candidate Morudu is currently appearing before Gutu Magistrate courts on trumped-up charges. He is facing three charges of assaulting Forever Associates of Zimbabwe [FAZ] members in Gutu West.
Morudu said, “I am being persecuted by Zanu PF through the police and courts. I am spending most of my time in courts rather than campaigning.”
However, CCC candidate Morudu and Gutu West citizens are resilient and working tirelessly to win this by-election.
