FINANCE minister Tendai Biti has won his battle with Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono for control of Treasury.

Sources close to the developments told the Zimbabwe Independent this
week that Gono is now keen on improving relations with Biti, who now has the
backing of cabinet.

The same sources however said Biti and Gono are now engaged in private
talks to improve their working relationship.

The sources said Gono and Biti held a meeting on Monday in bid to thaw
relations between them after serious recent run-ins.

This week’s meeting was a follow-up to yet another one held last week
which sources said necessitated the ongoing talks.

Sources said Gono apologised to Biti for washing their dirty linen in
public after Gono’s letter to Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai complaining
about Biti’s “harassment”.

In the letter, Gono alleged Biti had injured his reputation and caused
family anguish by calling him an al qaeda terrorist and accusing him of
destroying the economy through quasi-fiscal activities. Gono denies ruining
the economy, saying he saved it from collapse.

Gono also claimed Biti harboured a personal vendetta against him for
investigating possible foreign currency externalisation at Biti’s law firm.

But Honey& Blackenberg, the law firm at the centre of the row, denies
any wrongdoing.

Gono claimed the law firm had been involved in fraudulent foreign
currency deals.

Biti succeeded in cabinet recently to get support to institute reforms
at the central bank.

However, he failed to get cabinet’s nod to remove Gono as chairman of
the RBZ board after Zanu PF ministers argued there was no precedence for his
proposal.

Biti had proposed that the RBZ board be reconstituted by independent
directors and called for the appointment of a non-executive chairperson.

In a bid to settle his dispute with Biti, Gono is said to have also
met senior MDC officials.
Sources say the MDC is prepared to sacrifice Gono to get the donor
support the country needs to lift the economy from the doldrums.

The MDC is said to have agreed in caucus meetings recently that it
would implement a three-pronged strategy to remove Gono from office. This
involves using the Global Political Agreement (GPA), parliament and
diplomatic and donor pressure.

Zanu PF on the other hand has counter measures to ensure Gono remains
in office.

A Zanu PF source said the party is prepared to stall talks over
outstanding GPA issues in a bid to buy time for Gono and mobilise support
for him in public.

President Robert Mugabe, army chiefs and war veterans recently pledged
to back Gono. The MDC has appealed to Sadc over the Gono issue, but Mugabe
is using his regional contacts to block the issue.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai this week said it was important to
resolve the Gono dispute, saying that it was not a personal but a reform
issue.

“It is a very important issue, that is why it is a deadlocked issue,”Tsvangirai
said.

“The credibility of the Reserve Bank — not the merits of  the
individual — is very important.”

Written By:  CHRIS MURONZI