Gutu vows to fight Chamisa to the very end

HB 111/18 HC 1051/18

MOVEMENT FOR DEMOCRATIC CHANGE

REGISTRAR OF THE HICH

IND OF ZIMBABWE CIVIL DIVISION 6 APR 2018

Versus

THOKOZANI KHUPE

And

OBERT GUTU

And

ABEDNICO BHEBHE

IN THE HIGH COURT OF ZIMBABWE BEREJ BULAWAYO 17 & 24 APRIL 2018

Urgent Chamber application

Advocate L. Nkomo & J. Tshuma for the applicant Professor L. Madhuku & K. Ngwenya for the respondents

BERE J: From the papers filed in this urgent chamber application there is unmistakable savage internecine conflict within the Movement for Democratic Change political party. The conflict has hugely been brought about by the leadership vacuum that followed the death of the party's founding President Richard Morgan Tsvangirai on 14 February 2018.

The conflict has manifested itself in the emergence of two rival factions, one led by Mr Nelson Chamisa who is represented by Mr Morgan Komichi who has deposed to the founding affidavit in this application. Mr Nelson Chamisa has assumed the position of party President. The other faction is led by one Dr Thokozani Khupe who claims that by operation of law deriving from the MDC constitution, the death of the founding President of their party thrust her to the position of the Acting President of the MDC-T.

Ironically each of the two factions claim to derive their entitlement or legitimacy to the leadership of their party from provisions of their party's constitution. A reading of the filed papers suggests that each of the two factions is claiming supremacy over the other. The factional narrative projects a sorry state of affairs.

On 9 April 2018 the applicant under the name of Movement for Democratic Change represented by Mr Morgan Komichi filed an urgent chamber application seeking an interim interdict seeking to bar the respondents from:

"1.1 Unauthorised use or exploitation of the registered trademarks of the applicant being its name “Movement for Democratic Change" or its derivatives – "MDC or MDC-T, and the applicant's political logo.

“1.2 Passing off themselves or any organisation or entity which they belong to as the applicant."

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