Moyo grabs Speaker position,Mnangagwa congratulates him
Buoyed by the backing of 9 Mutambara MDC MPs MDC National Chairman, Lovemore Moyo has been elected speaker of parliament.
Moyo becomes the first opposition speaker since the country’s independence in 1980.
It is suspected the only Mutambara MDC MP who did not vote for Moyo was Bulilima MP,Moses Mzila Ndlovu. Initial observatons indicate that at least two ZANU PF MPs voted for Moyo and independent Tsholotsho MP Jonathan Moyo has since told the press he voted for Nyathi.
It was a dramatic vote, as some Mutambara MDC MPs before folding their ballots, flashed them towards MDC Vice President Thokozani Khuphe and their MDC-T colleagues as they voted.
Moyo won with 110 votes, against 98 for Paul Themba Nyathi from the Mutambara MDC faction out of the 208 ballots cast.
Speaking soon after being elected, Lovemore Moyo thanked the legislators for showing their confidence in him by voting for him.
Moyo said he will handle the position with professionalism for the benefit of ordinary Zimbabweans.
MDC MP for Mzingwane, Nomalanga Mzilikazi Khumalo grabbed the deputy speaker position.Khumalo was early this year reprimanded by Party secretary General Welshman Ncube for accompanying Tsvangirai and his team in a tour of her constituncy during the presidentail run-off election campaign.
As the MPs arrived for the ceremony, two MDC law-makers were arrested, a party spokesman, Nelson Chamisa, MDC-Kuwadzana., said.
President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF did not field a candidate for the vote, but backed a rival MDC faction.
“Mr Speaker, Sir. This is a truly historic event and I would like, on behalf of the president, our party and this side of this august House, to congratulate you,” Zanu-PF’s Rural Housing Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa said in parliament, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile as expected ZANU-PF candidate Edna Madzongwe received 58 votes against 28 votes cast for a candidate from opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change to take the senate presidency.
*Update Moyo voted for Nyathi
Posted by Raymond Mhaka
on August 25, 2008. Filed under Local News.
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