It’s a Different Ball game Now
November 28, 2009
By Takarinda Gomo
FOR people who have suffered so much, for far too long, Zimbabweans should be forgiven for being apprehensive. They have no faith in the politics of their country because they have been let down many, many times. Even this new Sadc initiative led by South African President Jacob Zuma is already being dismissed as hot air.
Political commentators have written, painting a gloomy picture of the Zuma intervention. They are entitled to their opinions, but sadly those opinions are informed by emotion rather than analytical thinking, based on recent events.
Ever since Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai dropped the bombshell by partially withdrawing from engaging Zanu-PF, there has been political turbulence in Zimbabwe, which has now gathered momentum and has a life of its own.
Zuma is dispatching a three member team of hardliners to Harare as his advance team this Sunday, November 29. The team is led by Zuma’s long time ally in the African National Congress, Mac Maharaj, who is a speciale for this mission. The other two are Charles Nqakula, former Safety and Security Minister and now Zuma’s political advisor, and Lindiwe Zulu, who is Zuma’s advisor on international relations.
At the signing ceremony of the long-awaited Bilateral Investment Protection and Promotion Agreement (BIPPA) between South Africa and Zimbabwe, in Harare Friday (November 27), this reporter engaged some business executives who had accompanied their Trade and Investment Minister Dr Rob Davies. I was told that Maharaj is a no nonsense man and that the trio mean business. It will not be business as usual for Zanu PF, I was assured.
Sources who attended the Maputo Troika Summit, which Zuma attended as an observer, say they saw a subdued President Robert Mugabe cutting a lone figure during deliberations.
The troika insisted that if Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations were failing to agree on the outstanding issues, then Zimbabwe should go for elections forthwith. Sadc, the African Union and the United Nations, would supervise the elections. Mugabe was cornered. This did not augur well for Zanu-PF given the popularity currently being enjoyed by Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC-T.
Besides, apart from being broke, Zanu-PF needs time to mobilize resources in order to deploy its youth militia and the secret service to go into the rural arrears to whip the hapless villagers into line. This requires time and the troika was coming up with an ultimatum.
Going to the polls within three months, as stipulated in the current Constitution, would only mean one thing for Mugabe and Zanu-PF. Defeat!
So Mugabe made his calculations to buy some more time by accepting the tight timelines of between 15 and not more than 30 days to have all outstanding issues in the Global Political Agreement resolved. He can then procrastinate and drag his feet as usual. Phew! That was close.
The Mugabe we all know is not the kind of person who takes kindly to anybody giving him an ultimatum, more especially from small boys. He could have told the troika to go and hang or to hell! So why was he so subdued? It was the Zuma magic and also mounting pressure from this young man called Joseph Kabila, the President of DRC Congo, who now chairs Sadc.
The South African facilitation team leader Mac Maharaj, who has impeccable credentials, will this week have his reputation put to the test.
By deploying this tough team, it seems Zuma wants results and he wants them fast. That is why part of the brief to the facilitating team was that Maharaj and company submits reports on progress and lack thereof to Zuma, before he arrives in Harare soon.
This time around, it is a different ball game for Zanu-PF, which seems to be running out of tricks.
Additional Reporting: The Zimbabwe mail
Posted by Raymond Mhaka
on November 29, 2009. Filed under Main Headline.
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