Morgan Richard Tsvangirai 10 Mar 1952 – 14 Feb 2018
Did Morgan Tsvangirai foresee his death?
Last week, exactly seven days before his death, Zimbabwe’s opposition figure, Morgan Tsvangirai performed a ritual that suggested that he was about to die; and that he was so concerned with consolidating the milestones he had achieved as an opposition leader.
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Sick Tsvangirai Names Interim Party Leader
Yes, he was sick and had been in and out of the hospital. But that was not the first time he was sick. He had been battling colon cancer for long. But dramatically, he named Nelson Chamisa the acting president of the Movement for Democratic Change with immediate effect.
The party said that Chamisa, one of three party vice presidents, will serve as president until Tsvangirai returns from receiving cancer treatment in neighbouring South Africa. The party said the party’s two other vice presidents also are in South Africa.
7 days later, the enigmatic leader died. Tsvagirai was loud critique of Robert Mugabe, most times, insisting that Mugabe must fall. Tvangirai died just four months after the fall of Mugabe.
Mr Tsvangirai, 65, a former prime minister, died in the evening of the Valentine’s Day, 2018, the MDC Vice President, Elias Mudzuri said.
He had been beaten and imprisoned numerous times.
Announcing Mr Tsvangirai’s death, Mr Mudzuri said on Twitter that the MDC had “lost our icon and fighter for democracy”.
Mr Tsvangirai founded the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) in 2000, repeatedly challenging Mr Mugabe during the ex-president’s long grip on power.
Morgan Tsvangirai was an incredibly brave man who risked his life to stand up to the authoritarian rule of Robert Mugabe.
He did not succeed in ousting Mr Mugabe – due to the intimidation of his supporters and some blatant rigging – but he did at least live to see the downfall of his long-time rival.
Although he was obviously very sick, he even travelled home from South Africa, where he was being treated, for the occasion.
But in purely political terms, Mr Mugabe always managed to get the better of the charismatic former union leader – especially when he was prime minister and they were supposedly sharing power.
Some of his ex-comrades in the MDC, which he founded, accused him of dictatorial tendencies and the party split several times.
Now, the MDC will have the formidable task of trying to unite and mount a credible challenge to Mr Mugabe’s successor Emmerson Mnangagwa in this year’s elections.
In the 2008 election, Mr Tsvangirai gained the most votes in the first round but not enough to win outright.
Before the second round of voting, Mr Mugabe’s security forces carried out a campaign of violence against opposition supporters, and Mr Tsvangirai withdrew.
Mr Mugabe was declared the winner, but an international outcry over allegations of violence and vote-rigging led to a power sharing agreement in which Mr Tsvangirai would serve as prime minister.
Mr Tsvangirai ran against Mr Mugabe again in 2013 but lost by a landslide.
The MDC is said to be divided over who should lead it into elections later this year against the governing Zanu-PF party, led by Mr Mugabe’s successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa.