Harare– The Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) on Thursday issued an emphatic rejection of what it described as “misleading claims” stemming from a High Court judgment currently under appeal, insisting that no individual or faction can lawfully assert control over the party or its parliamentary caucus while the matter is before a higher court.

In a-worded statement, party spokesperson Willias Madzimure declared that any attempt to restructure parliamentary leadership or committee representation based on the contested ruling is “unlawful, null, and void.”

“It is trite law that the noting of an appeal suspends the operative effect of a judgment to the extent that it is challenged,” Madzimure said. “An appeal has been duly and timeously lodged. The judgment in question is therefore not final, not enforceable, and incapable of conferring any authority whatsoever over the CCC or its parliamentary representation.”

The statement did not specify which judgment it referred to, but it follows recent High Court litigation involving factions led by Welshman Ncube and Sengezo Tshabangu, the self-styled interim secretary-general.

Last week, Justice Neville Wamambo barred Tshabangu from making parliamentary appointments, ruling that he had violated a prior court order .

Madzimure directly challenged the authority of Tshabangu, noting that an “extant interdict” restraining his conduct “remains in force and binding until lawfully set aside.” He accused unnamed actors of attempting to “launder factional ambitions through the courts” and of seeking advantage through “judicial manipulation.”

The statement further asserted that claims to “control Parliament” founded on a suspended judgment are “institutionally reckless and constitutionally offensive.”

The CCC has been gripped by a protracted leadership crisis since founding leader Nelson Chamisa’s departure over a year ago. Competing factions led by Ncube, Jameson Timba, and Tshabangu have each claimed legitimacy, with multiple cases weaving through the courts. Timba has vowed to continue litigation to resolve the dispute definitively .

Madzimure, who serves as spokesperson for the Ncube faction, reiterated that Ncube is the party’s acting president—a position he said has been “confirmed by the courts”—and rejected Timba’s rival claim to interim leadership .

Thursday’s statement, however, was issued in the name of the CCC generically and sought to establish a unified legal position: that any judgment under appeal confers no operative authority.

“The legitimacy of this movement arises from its members, its democratic structures, and respect for due process—not from opportunistic litigation,” Madzimure said.

The party called on parliament, constitutional institutions, and the public to “reject in the clearest terms any claims founded on judgments under appeal” and to uphold “the restraint and fidelity to law that our constitutional order demands.”

The development deepens uncertainty over who holds the authority to speak for Zimbabwe’s main opposition party, with parallel structures continuing to issue competing directives less than two years before the scheduled 2028 general elections.