Deal still on the cards, invites sent out
President Robert Mugabe will sign a power-sharing deal today with MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai as Prime Minister,Metro has established. Parliament which the MDC controls is also likely to be convened as early as Tuesday.
There was a flurry of activity at the Rainbow towers where the MOU was signed two weeks ago and security agents have already condoned off some areas on the property,but there were no significant decorations yet.
Meetings were held at state house and at the South African embassy early in the morning and dragged through the afternoon until this evening.
There are unconfirmed reports that invitations have already been sent out to diplomats and other guests who should attend the ceremony when the power-sharing deal is signed.
Metro has established from one of the negotiators that Mugabe would be retained as executive president, while Tsvangirai would occupy the post of executive Prime Minister.
“We have agreed to adopt a system which is almost similar to the French model, in which both the president and the prime minister wield executive authority”, the negotiator said.
“Generally, we have been agreed on many issues. Everybody acknowledged that the people have suffered for too long as a result of the economic hardships caused by political bickering between us and them.”
The two security ministries, Defence and State Security were left to ZANU PF after insistence by the Joint Operation Commands but they will be deputized by the MDC. However the MDC will take over home affairs and justice.
JOC members also wanted assurances that the MDC will not take away farms that were distributed by the government in the chaotic land reforms and the MDC had to release a statement affirming that it will not reverse the land grab.
An “MDC government would ask the international community and multilateral lenders to help compensate farmers whose farms were confiscated by Mugabe’s government since 2000″, the MDC said in an e-mailed statement on Friday.
In a related development Metro has established from sources in the Mutambara led MDC faction which controls the crucial 10 seats in Parliament that the party’s secretary general Welshman Ncube will likely take up a single cabinet post offered to them in the government not the leader of the formation Arthur Mutambara.
The faction will have two posts in the inclusive government one in the cabinet and another deputising another key ministry and Bulilima MP Moses Mzila Ndlovu has already been earmarked for it.
Posted by Philip Mangena
on August 9, 2008. Filed under Local News.
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