Correspondent|MDC Alliance Secretary-General Douglas Mwonzora has said he regrets the circumstances which led to former colleagues Dr. Thokozani Khupe and Mr. Obert Gutu leaving the party they helped found.

He said he used avenues within the party to protest against firing the colleagues, but his efforts were drowned by “people who did not care.”

Speaking at the weekend in a media interview, Mr. Mwonzora said: “I did not want the MDC to disintegrate, but some people did not just care. I still think that Ms Khupe, Mr. Abednico Bhebhe, Mr. Obert Gutu, Mr. Lovemore Moyo and others should not have left the party. But it became their choice; I also had a choice and my choice was to remain in the party.”

Khupe and Gutu are the president and vice president respectively of the rival opposition outfit, MDC-T.

Mr. Mwonzora was responding to allegations that as Secretary-General, he did nothing to protect members who were expelled without following party disciplinary procedures.

He said his options were limited as he was also a victim of the same circumstances that were facing Ms Khupe and Mr. Gutu.

“I did act (against their expulsion), and almost got expelled as well. You may know that I was also a victim, and almost got burnt in the hut as well. I protested within the party.”

The MDC Alliance heads towards an elective Congress on 24 May, with all the sixteen positions up for contest.

Speaking in the same interview, Mr. Mwonzora clarified the status of alliance principals at Congress.

“The position of the party is that those who have now been integrated into the MDC dissolved their parties and became MDC members with full rights, including the right to be voted into office.

“Presidents (Agrippa) Mutambara and (Jacob) Ngarivhume must be eligible to be voted if they are nominated, but on condition that they dissolved their parties. But i am not sure if they dissolved their parties; I will have to check. But if they did dissolve their parties, then they have full rights at Congress as MDC members.”