BBC GRILLS CHAMISA

Backtracks on claims he made

MDC Alliance presidential candidate Advocate Nelson Chamisa has been exposed internationally as a serial liar following a grilling by a British journalist, forcing him to admit that he has never met US President Donald Trump.

Chamisa, in what has become a sort of trademark, in January claimed at a rally in Mutare that he had met Trump.

He claimed the US President promised to extend $15 billion to the MDC Alliance if it wins the country’s elections.

In a probing interview with BBC Hardtalk anchor Stephen Sackur on Thursday, Adv Chamisa backtracked on the claims.

Adv Chamisa was in Britain where he made presentation on different platforms.

Mr Tendai Biti and him last December visited America where they advocated for sanctions against the new dispensation.

“When we met President Trump in America alongside Biti, he asked us how much we needed to move the country forward and we told him that we needed $15 billion . . . ,”

During the interview Sackur took him to task over his earlier statements.

He tried to weasel his way out by claiming: “All those statements were said by other people not me . . . . I said I met the Trump administration. We did not (meet). We met the Trump’s administration that’s the point I meant,” said Adv Chamisa.

Relentlessly, Sackur asked: “What I mean is that it was not true that you saw Donald Trump and Donald Trump indicated to you that if you won . . . but there is a video that shows you at a rally in January in Zimbabwe saying you met Donald Trump. We are still confused you are saying you did not meet Donald Trump?”

The American embassy in Zimbawe, released a statement in January denying Chamisa’s statements after a video and voice notes of the incident went viral.

The MDC-T leader, during the interview, claimed that party supporters who attacked then MDC-T deputy president Dr Thokozani Khupe at the burial of the party’s founder Morgan Tsvangirai in Buhera had been removed from the structures.

“All those people who were identified have been dealt with because everything was captured under a video camera. We are not going to have bad apples affecting the good basket of democrats. We will not accept any violent elements within our midst,” said Adv Chamisa.

Last month Mr Chamisa in an interview with South Africa television station ANN7 said “Zanu-PF agent provocateurs” caused the skirmishes during Mr Tsvangirai’s burial.

Mr Sackur touched on the MDC-T leader’s penchant of making ‘silly’ and ‘nonsensical’ electoral promises.

“There is a difference between making promises that you can keep and promises that are nothing more than a fantasy. And let’s go through some of yours. In January you told people in your country that you can solve Zimbabwe’s liquidity crisis in two weeks and if you fail to do so you will leave office because you have committed two weeks to solve liquidity crisis,” said Sackur.

“That’s nonsense. With due respect Mr Chamisa saying you can solve a problem that has dogged the country for years and fix it in two weeks. That just sounds silly.”

He even ridiculed Adv Chamisa’s for his bullet train claims saying it was beyond nonsense.

Adv Chamisa however defended himself saying he was a youthful futuristic politician.

“That is the future, I’m a visionary I’m a young man and I have said that we must begin to build infrastructure such as the one you have in the UK,” said Adv Chamisa.

Zimbabwean lawyer and writer Ms Petina Gappah observed on her Facebook page that Mr Chamisa had failed his first international test.

“We are hoping that this trip inspires MDC to really examine their international media strategy and examine honestly the advice they give their leader. The terrain shifted dramatically in November. The days of old lazy narrative are behind us. They need to be clever and sophisticated,” she wrote.

She said the MDC-T was failing to come up with its own strategies but only reacted to events in the ruling Zanu-PF to its detriment.

“They need a narrative that makes them look like they are ready to govern, and not being mere rabble rousers. They were exposed in the last trip because it was a reactive trip made in panic after SB’s trip. So they came with no manifesto, no real ideas beyond slogans. The advisors should have said: wait until we make greater impact,” wrote Ms Gappah.

“And it was poor advice to do all media that asked (sic). You do only the media that you think will be good for you. And you go with talking points,” she said.

Ms Gappah said ill advice from Mr Chamisa’s handlers led to the monumental blunder of appearing on Hardtalk.

“Hardtalk is a terrible format if you want to introduce yourself to a global audience. It is not as though there are no other formats. Chamisa received poor advice from his handlers Coltart, Welshman and Biti. They are all lawyers who know little about strategic communication. Did they develop top lines? Counter points? How hard was it to anticipate the weaknesses and work on strengthening? They sent their man with no armour,” she said. — @nqotshili