The Emmerson Mnangagwa controlled state media makes unconfirmed reports that MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been stopped by party structures from forming a broader coalition with other opposition groups, which include former Vice President Joice Mujuru’s Zim People First.

Quoting sources who are not named, the reports claim that Tsvangirai made proposals that would have relegated Ms Thokozani Khupe from her current position as deputy president.

“He (Mr Tsvangirai) comes face to face with reality in Gwanda where people told him point blank that we have been in the struggle alone for a long time and why should we accommodate late comers now,” said the unnamed source.

Another source added: “This coalition is just useless and why should we be used as a springboard by Mujuru who is testing opposition politics for the first time? Our resolve was emboldened by the fighting spirit that was showed by our structures in Gwanda. I think it is an issue that the national council is going revisit.”

The state media reports run contrary to Tsvangirai’s own spirited announcements last December, after a meeting of the supreme decision-making body the National Council, where he said he was ‘heartened’ by events in Ghana and Gambia where the opposition won resoundingly against the ruling parties. Tsvangirai’s new optimism was derived from the Ghana and Gambia experiences, that they can be repeated in Zimbabwe, rushing to quickly make another commitment to participate in the 2018 elections.

“We are heartened by the developments in Africa, where credible elections are taking place and where sitting parties and governments are conceding defeat. Ghana and the Gambia are such examples, even though Gambia’s Yahya Jammeh is now singing a different tune after initially conceding defeat,” said Tsvangirai who later attended the inauguration ceremony in Ghana.