In an interview with a London-based radio station last week, Ncube alleged that the defectors were bribed by MDC-T officials, an allegation that has drawn angry responses from some of the deserters.

The MDC has since 2010 been hard-hit by defections.

The latest group to defect from the party include legislators, Nomalanga Khumalo (Mzingwane); Dalumuzi Khu-malo (Senator Umzingwani); Thandeko Zinti Mnkandla (Gwanda North); Maxwell Dube (Tsholotsho South) and Kembo Dube (Lupane).

“We know the non-governmental organisations which are being used; we know that councillors are being given bicycles, cell phones and allowances. We know because some of our Members of Parliament rejected those offers,” charged Ncube. 

“We know the trips, foreign trips they were paid for. We know some of those who were expelled who were even taken to holidays with their wives in South Africa. So we know for a fact that there are all sorts of, what in normal society would be considered illegal inducements,” he added.

Ncube said the inducements were in contempt of the electoral process. 

“It is not the nature of politics to go and recruit people out there. If your electoral strategy is simply that, you will spend five years enticing, bribing, paying and doing all sorts of unsavoury things to get support from other parties, it is first disrespectful, undemocratic and shows contempt for the democratic process.

“But to use whatever financial muscle you have, whatever inducements or enticements you have to literally bribe elected officials of other parties, it's not the behaviour that you expect of a political party, which is supposed to lead us in a different direction from the 30 years or so of ZANU-PF misrule,” he said.

But some of the named defectors who spoke to The Financial Gazette scoffed at the allegations.

Gwanda North MP, Zinti-Mnkandla laughed off the remarks.

“I can’t dignify such nuisance with a comment,” said Mnkandla.

Tsholotsho South MP, Maxwell Dube, said the allegations were untrue. 

“There is nothing like that, Ncube is just peddling falsehoods”.

Expelled legislator for Bulilima East, Norman Mpofu, described Ncube as elitist.

He said: “Ncube runs the party like a personal shebeen. He doesn’t consult. He is someone who looks wonderful to work with from a distance, work with him and you will realise his true colours. His character doesn’t augur very well with the people, he is     elitist and too self-centred”.