Southern African leaders declared Tuesday that the MDC and ZANU PF parties had agreed to form a unity government, but the MDC said that was not the case.
In a communique, nine nations’ leaders and Cabinet ministers from four other countries said a Zimbabwean prime minister — the post opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai is to hold — will be sworn in Feb. 11 after Parliament passes a constitutional amendment creating the post. Ministers would be sworn in Feb. 13, the statement from the regional bloc said.
But Nqobizitha Mlilo, a spokesman for the Movement for Democratic Change, told The Associated Press that “The MDC has not agreed to go into government of national unity.”
He said his party’s leaders would meet Friday to decide their next step.
South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, chairman of the Southern African Development Community, told reporters that the opposition had agreed to the coalition government.
“They will ensure that (the Constitutional amendment) is executed and they will present themselves” to form a government, he said.
But an MDC statement released soon after said the summit’s conclusions: “As far as the merits are concerned, our expectation was again that SADC would come up with a just resolution to the outstanding issues in the interest of Zimbabwe and all the parties concerned,” the opposition said in a statement. “It was our expectation that the SADC processes would be aboveboard and beyond reproach.”
An MDC statement noted the summit had failed to address concerns including the equitable sharing of Cabinet posts and the abduction and alleged torture of opposition members by government security agents and police.
The summit, however, agreed to Mugabe’s demand that the opposition first enter into government, then resolve outstanding issues.
The leaders also sided with Mugabe in insisting that the rival parties should share the Cabinet portfolio of home affairs — important because it oversees the police accused of kidnapping and brutalizing opposition supporters.
Phandu Skelemani, the foreign minister of Botswana, which has been a lone voice in the region in criticizing Mugabe, said the suggestion of sharing a ministry was “ridiculous.”
Speaking in an interview with SW Radio Africa while the summit was going on, Skelemani said the southern African bloc “is divided because we simply don’t put the people first but rather an individual.”
He said the leaders “feel some kind of obligation toward Mugabe,” though, increasingly, some were speaking out in private.
NO DEAL INDEED
MDC should simply refuse getting into this GNU. It is our request to MDC to simply reject forthwith. We call upon Mutambara and his MDC to join hands with people of Zimbabwe at this critical time and reject this joke. Can all the dermocratic forces in Zimbabwe join hands and we focus our strength towards defeating Zanu PF and SADC as we march towards our freedom. This proble has gone out and beyond SADC jurisdiction, or even beyond AU as its another pathetic body. We are sure of the Kofi Annans whether they can knock sense to other AU leaders.
Otherwise, MDC this is just a joke from friends of a dictator. It is the problem of Zimbabwean that Mugabe became so defiant to old age that we feel obliged to have pity on him. No ways. We know he is afraid of his crimes as ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe once revealed.
The MDC must not be forced into this charade against the wishes of the people. The leadership must be steadfast in their resolve to have the outstanding issues taken on board or else there is no deal. The incompetent SADC is trying to ramrod a deal which favours Mugabe and tries to discredit the MDC. They want to divide the party and so Tsvangirai should be very careful in what he agrees to inside these talks or he risks being rejected by the masses who elected him and who have suffered so much under this brutal regime. How can you agree to such nonsense when our cadres are facing untold suffering inside Chikurubi and indeed throughout Zimbabwe through disease, violence , abductions and torture?
SADC, excluding Botswana and perhaps Zambia, is a toothless dog as somebody has said. Why are they so afraid of Mugabe. SADC thinks we in MDC will be so naive to agree to enter into the GNU and have trust that a corrupt, wicked, cunning, brutal, untrustworthy and pompous Mugabe and his cronies will address sticking issues once the GNU is formed! A-ah tipeiwo maserious varume! Hapana dhiri Mugabe you can go it alone and we will see where it ends. Nhamo haijairike kune vamwe not isu MaZimbabweans, we are prepared to wait untill kingdom comes. Tongai tione!
Why does SADC insist in using a Zanu PF document as the basis for a GNU? I still do not understand why SADC is asking that they wait 6 months to review the portfolio allocations? Why not just get it correct right from the beginning? I see Mbeki’s hand at play here. He thinks he’s a master strategist, my a***.
The issue here is not about getting power but changing the current set-up so that real democratization can take place. As long as Zanu remains at the reigns, still will stay the same. No-one still has answered why Zanu gets Defence and State Security while Home Affairs has to be co-shared with the MDC?
African solutions to African problems huh?? What a joke!!
Why SADC cannot do anything to Mugabe & Zanu PF
Angola – Jose Eduardo Dos Santos was never voted into power – so how can he tell Mugabe that he rigged elections.
1) Swaziland is under a monarch so how can they tell Mugabe you lost the elections.
2) Lesotho is under “military rule” so how can a soldier criticize another soldier.
3) Tanzania – Kikwete was groomed by Mugabe for Benjamin Mkapa
4) DRC – do you call that a democracy. Kabila’s bodyguards are Zimbabweans.
5) Namibia – SWAPO and ZANU are identical twins.
6) Malawi – remember Bingu wa Mutharika (ops wa Mugabe) has a farm in Chegutu.
7) Mauritius & Madagascar – they do not anything to do with mainland Africa.
9)South Africa – Kgalema Monthathe – is a lame duck president, if Mugabe asks him who voted him into office what will he say.
10) Zambia – sad that Mwanawasa passed on. Zambia relies on Zim for almost 90% of her stuff that requires road movement. So any criticism of Mugabe – he can close Zambia in 24 hours. Worse still do you know that Rupiah Banda fathered a child with a senior Zanu PF woman. Mukwasha waBob.
11) Botswana – Ian Khama lone voice, but how will he respond if Mugabe asks him who voted him into office.
12) Mozambique – Guebuza – was Mugabe’s aide during the guerrilla war.
13) Mbeki – Mr African Renaisance, he is unemployed, so will rely on SADC handouts to eke out a living.
14) If MDC were to have an upper hand in Zimbabwe, liberation movements (ZANU PF, Frelimo, SWAPO, ANC etc) will be in danger of being swept out of office by Labour based political parties.
Now you know, these guys are not daft, they know how to protect their interest.
While all this is true about Zim politics, Tsvangirai should stop participating in something he knows is going nowhere. He is making a mockery of himself. He knows the intentions of Zanu. Tsvangi is too weak, he is slowly becoming irrelevant now. Why does he attend these meetings and says nothing only to cry foul when the meeting is over? Why can’t he tell them in the meeting and even walk out in protest. He sits there absorbs everything they say and signs stupid papers and then walks out and say he was forced or cheated, that is politics, if he feels like he is being cheated then leave it to others. He is not the only person who can lead MDC. Now he is going to consult the MDC National Assembly, how many times has he done that, what did they tell him before going into the talks? Years back before the MDC broke into factions, he never consulted, he bulldozed his way through, look were we are now, and he wants to consult now –sounds funny and stupid. He is joining the GNU, he is finished, MDC will be swallowed, he is going to be irrelevant soon. There is nothing he is going to achieve under Mugabe government – that much forget. If he can not get what he wants now, what more after joining GNU. He is slowly being swallowed and he knows it. Too bad –mwana wenyoka inyoka. Chematama has failed, he does not have the wits, no guts, no advisors, except for the western handlers. Poor Chematama – basa kungowanda kuBotswana zvinu zvichiparara. You lost time, you should have been doing a lot on the ground and all you do is hide in Botswana. Maybe Biti can upstage you dunderhead. Its politics dummy, go to the people! What a prime minister, you are finished – go buy a Zanu card!
baba black sheep have you any wool-yes sir yes sir three bags full. hahahahahha mdc idiots we welcome you to zanu pf.Gnu is simply zanu pf in disguise.I told you morgan just wants power.He will never make his own decisions.Now he will consult his masters in the west forget this nonsense about his party-Biti is already angry with him for signing but he does not the responsibility if things go wrong.SO now he wants to party to vote-what dude? Obama as president sometimes has to use executive powers…so morgan sign and let the party follow your decision.That is presidencial courage dude..but of course even chamisa has said mugabe made some concessions-hahahahaha what concessions-governors posts hahahahaha we new all along that we had to bargain hard and fool these idiots into believing that governors posts were so important..we stuck at it until the last minute and now we are still in charge-sharing the police hahahahaha mapenzi e mdc..prepare to return to zimbabwe.The British cant wait to load their Airlines to get rid of you..you wait and see.
Zimbabwe inyika yedu -lets return home and be proud and dont worry zanu pf is welcoming.Dzokai ne foreign currency yenyu and we will give you red carpet treatment..honestly start planning now.Dont be the last one to return because all the good jobs will be gone.Mugabe ishasha.Now mdc or not we have a clear route to form a gvt as advised by SADC.mdc or not zimbabwe will not be the same again after February –happy birthday mr president ..hahahahaha mdc matoma.m.a.
Mdc has no negotiating skills.Now lets see what your politburo does? To join or not to join.Morgan has avoided responsibility as leader of the party.Chamisa has admitted that mugabe made some concessions..we the people of zimbabwe know now that mugabe has had to drop some of his demands in order to make life bearable for us-he is putting zimbabwe first..lets see what the mdc will do.
Hezvo ka izvo. start selling your businesses now because brown will be a man in a hurry to send you back home.hahahahahaha welldone morgan!!! now its down to Biti..hahahahaha -i am packing my bags.
vana tsvangirai stop crying now-we see what you cant see because we are not mentally deluded by colonialists.Now you are crying morgan this and that and all along you have been his supporter with all those flip flops.We warned you he is not president material but it took you so long to understand..never mind we all learn from our mistakes.Mugabe is still there to lead the country. But in future dont focus on mugabe and his mistakes , just find out as much as you can about your leader before you get excited.Now whatever happens SADC has given the green light for Zanu pf to form a gvt with or without mdc..this is the end of mdc as we know it.We will soon swallow them like zapu..hahahahaha .zapu actually swallowed themselves hahahahaha .Now zapu no longer have power since they left zanu pf .They are history now.hahahahaha .hupenyu hwangu kufara chete -ye ye ye hupenyu hwangu…faka pressure-faka pressure faka pressure…zanu chiwororo kani.
Here is how chematama failed:
failed to unite the two mdc parties before the march elections-why or how i dont know.
Biti announced the election results before ZEC -that was a disaster and made mugabe mad
living in exile and failing to prepare for the June run off-very bad mistake.who advised him?
Pulling out of the June run off was one of the worst political decisions i have ever witnessed in my life time and beyond and before which ever applies…more like scuicide politics..how could he do that after all that had gone on before.The spe****s about how the mdc was going to take part in the election with blood dripping from the end of their fingers-they were determined to vote the old man out on june 27-only to turn around and pull out last minute…ahhhhhhh hey!!!!
The passport thing was just a shambles really-we all know that.Another excuse to chill in Botswana while the country burns…
His main advisor EDDY CROSS came up with the theory that the mdc should let the bastards burn..that is the black people by the way .Morgan’ advisors -where do they come from?
Zimbabwe inyika yeropa -dont ever forget that.Obama should apologise for insulting our fist-a symbol of our country and chimurenga. How dare he questions our fist? Bloody masai.Go hang. Chibhakera ndizvo.Have you ever seen anyone win a war waving hands about.There is no such thing as a friendly war…
Well done SADC for the commendable decision reached on tuesday. SADC leaders defeated attempts by Britain and United States through MDC-T to make the gnu deal collapse..The decision taken by sadc means that President Mugabe can go ahead and form gvt according to the dates given even if the 2 mdc factions refuse to cooperate. It seems, sadc leaders now see that sellout- tsvangi and his mdc cohorts for what they really are that is-western sponsored stooges instructed by their western handlers to frustrate the gpa..It appears tsvangi is now a cornered rat.,oita sei zvino , he’s now at a catch 22 situation..You see that aspect of lack of education on the part of tsvangirai- that is a tragedy for him keeps coming back into the picture, the confused stooge now waits for instructions from Britain and U.S on the wayforward after the humiliation they suffered at the summit after sadc rejected western drafted demands of mdc-t…Nyaya yekusadzidza iyi..Tsvangirai and his goons personally may want to join the GNU but the owners of the mdc-t which are britain, U.S,white farmers and rhodesians will prevent them from doing so because they don’t like the clauses about illegal sanctions and the irrevessibility of land reform ..On the aspect of the violence of mdc-t supporters at the sadc summit venue in south africa, sadc leaders saw for themselves the hooliganism, banditry, and lawlessness deeply rooted in this western proxy-mdc-t. The incident highlighted the extent to which mdc will disrespect african leaders through lawlessness…tsvangi was warned by analyists last week that he has one foot set in his political grave , now , due to his failure to respect sadc resolution it seems another foot is moving towards the grave..
ko manzwa here hanzi gonzo nachin’ai zvatosvorana.now we await two more pieces of this puppeted monsta.zanu peshenzi dzedu kuwanda jahwi.
SADC
We are not entering to any GNU with zanu as small boys that they can forget these fools. Let zaby continue to destroy zimbabwe on their own.
MDC went to the Pretoria meeting with a set of demands and none of those demands were met so why is the MDC even thinking of joining the unity government?. Mugabe’s back is against the wall, he has nowhere to go. MDC should not release the pressure.
If the MDC joins Zanu in forming a government of National Unity I will join another party or I will encourage Tendayi and Bennet to form their own party.
With the final collapse of the GNU talks most of us who had been holding our breath can now breath freely as it is now clear that the GNU is a dead deal. It is time to abandon this hopeless exercise and call a spade a spade, Zanu Pf does not care how much the common people suffer and Mugabe is not going to just hand over power just like that, we have to fight for it, we have to break a few eggs in order to make this omelette. Diplomacy is dead, now is the time for decisive action, Zanu pf as a party is very arrogant and it is time for us the people to show them the road.
Zanu pf has not been negotiating in good faith because of the following reasons:
ZANU-PF cronies want control of the Finance ministry to protect their economic interests and assets that they procured by looting state coffers. And this will also ensure the continued looting of donor money that will be poured once the MDC joins the inclusive govt.
ZANU-PF cronies want control of the Justice Ministry to retain oversight over the justice system, the thinking being that giving control of the justice ministry to the MDC would give the MDC a platform on which to prosecute ZANU-PF aligned people accused of corruption and human rights abuses.
ZANU-PF cronies want control of the Home Affairs ministry to insulate themselves against arrests by the police and possible subsequent prosecution for crimes, corruption committed in the past. And without a doubt Zanu Pf will in the near future use Home Affairs to destroy the MDC under the gist of “legitimate prosecution for crimes, like corruption etc whose evidence can easily be planted”(Remember Nkomo and the cache of arms of war unearthed on his farms)
We Zimbabweans have got to face reality, we cheered and turned a blind eye as Zanu pf entrenched itself into the GVT, there were signs all around that we might regret in the future, of note- worthy was the Willowgate scandal. Not only did the scandal show that there was a lot of corruption within the ranks of Zanu pf ‘s GVT, but the alarm bells should have rung loud and clear when Mugabe pardoned the offenders within hours of the court sentencing them. This was a clear abuse of power. This has escalated to such an extend that Zanu Pf members think that they have powers of life and death over all Zimbabweans and such arrogance cannot be left unchallenged.
Tsvangirayi and his team have got to realise that by joining this group of egomaniacs who are on a sinking boat might also condemn them to drowning with Zanu Pf. The People of Zimbabwe did not die for a piecemeal deal, and MDC should not make a mockery of the ideals that many have died and been maimed for.
ZIMBABWE IS GREATER THAN MUGABE, SO WHY SHOULD WE FEAR HIM. MDC SHOULD STOP BEING COWARDS. IT’S TIME TO TELL MUGABE WHERE HE CAN SHOVE THE AGREEMENT……………
TSWANGIRAI is playing cat and mouse when he’s living like a king in south africa fcuk him, now i understand where all this hatred is coming from, just accept the deal and move over. We need to rebuild our country very soon why is it taken so long for zanu to get rid of this idiot he might be using juju. AND TO YOU tswangirai ; u are so ugly i even use your photo to scare my kids, pliz go and ask for asylum from the dutch embassy chicken runner.
You ZANU Fcukwits are ejaculating prematurely, come Friday you’ll be free to go at it alone. I guarantee you, you will not see out this year because Zimbabweans will remove you from power. You won’t even get half like you should have got now had you realised that this was your only out.
You will get what’s coming to you, don’t you forget that, matafi evanhu!
mdc -mapenzi.after half time its one nil to zanu pf yet again.morgan has made the correct decision to join the gnu.if mdc oppose it on friday, that will be their demise and morgan wil have to resign. otherwise why keep him as president of mdc? he can be minister of mines under a zanu gvt. sadc welldone for standing firm against the eil west who run the mdc.they are now busy corrupting obama with their filth lies about zimbabwe..but you know what, zimbabwe is not in america or britain.
zanu chiwororo.dont be mad with morgan-he has made the right decision for you and your family.it may be hard for you to take but he got some further concessions from mugabe too.you should be celebrating. if not then what do you expect morgan to do? Take up arms? coup? strikes? wait for the country to collapse? sorry but that may take a while without the desired effect in the end? This is your best shot..sadc will not be moved.AU cant tell south africa anyhting.montlane and crew have spoken and that is that..gnu in february it is.Now chamisa has gone quiet.there is yet another mdc spokesman on the scene..how many in total? who pays them? morgan welldone-thats the first time i am congradulating you for anything.keep it up.hope you win on friday .good luck.if they overturn your decision then you must resign..
MDC is not going to join this charade. After the meeting on friday of which yours truly will be attending no government will be formed at all.It is an exercise in futility
merit urima.ta your mother is ugly not morgan, you should learn to respect our leader he is not a murderer. zanu should go it alone and I tell you before 2009 you will see what happens. There are pictures of dying people and bones of dead people’s bones in Zimbabwean jails that were shown in etv news today. I can tell you these are crimes against humanity, I know our leadership will not want to be associated with murderers. LET zanu IDIOTS GO IT ALONE VAKOMANA, MDC CANNOT BE ASSOCIATED WITH CORRUPTION.
Baba Black Sheep,Fungai,Nicol….you guys attack MDC and MT without offering solutions to the problems of our country.Like Chamisa said” the MDC has the people on their side”, just like ZANU PF had people on their side in 1980.MT seems to be fighting for the people,he has visited cholera victims,empty shops and seems to know the problems the country is facing.Yes, you might hate him but the truth of the matter is Zanu pf is fighting for its survival.That is why they will do everything possible to stay in control,they will kidnap,abduct,torture and kill to protect themselves.If they had the support of the people the they would not be doing all this.You guys find it easy to critisize MT because you know he is a man who can take criticism,would you do that to RG,you know your fate.And as for imperialist rhetoric,you guys are misguided.This day we have a Black US President, all made possible because Obama never made race part of his campaign strategy.Times have changed and please change with the times.And as much as you might hate the USA,everytime I see pictures of food distribution ,I always see maize bags with a big USA label.I have ever seen a Chinese,Russian or even a South African label.So these African and Eastern countries can only offer us solidarity but Western countries can offer us tangible help,so the country can get back to its feet.AS for this SADC charade,this was an oversight on the part of the MDC.I guess they wanted to taste the sincerity of African solutions.The fact of the matter is SADC and AU are not going to let Mugabe be dragged to the Hague ,period.No matter how bad the composition of the GNU looks,Mugabe has to be in control and SADC has made sure of that.They have even gone further to insist on co-sharing the Home Affairs ministry precisely to protect Mugabe and his bunch from being dragged to the Hague.So when the MDC formally rejects participation in the GNU on friday,Zanu pf are back to squire one.They might have the blessing of SADC but thats only solidarity ,SADC wont revive the country’s economy.And with the cholera further going down into South Africa and a possible Ebola outbreak,with the impending World Cup and elections in SA and Obama lobbying China and Russia to isolate Mugabe I don’t see that solidarity holding for too long…SO Reality check Comrades.
If Tsvangirai is wrong he must be critisized, we are not going to worship him when he is doing nothing. Going to the hospitals visiting cholera people does not mean anything when all this time he was hiding in Botswana. He is a coward, he is ill advised. Now see the struggle with Biti, they will side line him very soon. A boardroom coop, even the MDCs are tired of him, just like before the first split. Biti will either dethrone him or else he will just join Zanu and lie in bed with Mugabe who he looks more alike in everything he utters. Pull out or no pull out MDC is finished. Zanu is useless and finished too. Mapenzi evanu. What consultation is he talking about, he does not listen to his own , so what consultation is he going to do. MDC split because he was adamant to change, defied the party’s majority vote, now he wants to consult – its going to be another split or coop. Come next week Tsvangi is going to be history, Biti the power hungry will be in charge – shame on MDC – dununu tsvangirai
I know the saying ‘ukuwa kwendoda yikuvuka kwenye’ is true about what is happening and or is to happen here in Zim. There are people who are benefiting and enjoying life and never want life to get back to normal back here in Zim.
Whether it is sacrificing MDC or not we want things to normalise yesterday. Guys, at the expense of your pleasure and happiness Zimbabweans are suffering. I know there are some of you out there and back here who enjoy donor money and other things that only last for as long as Zimbos continue suffering like this.
I call upon the MDC to do this for the sake of ordinary Zimbabweans. 3000 have died of cholera and a lot of pain is being inflicted into the people every minute, by many other difficulties they face here.
People will obviously thank the MDC come next elections if they rescue them out of this.
Fcuk ZANU! you remind me of your frothing mento Biti. Hasha will get you nowhere besides getting you high Blood pressure and occasionally a beating. Come Friday Morgan will join nus and Biti will go into oblivion. I love the way this is turning out.
If MDC gets into a deal with ZANU, that will mark the end of MDC. Mugabe and Zanu will remain with a b**** cake and they will use it to but patronage whilst MDC will only provide luxuries for about 15 people only. What will happen to the NDC members who will be out of the gravy train government of ZANU. Mugabe will appoint diplomats, governors etc as keep his people happy. The haves and the have nots in the MDC will start infighting. To keep the unity, let Mugabe rule alone. Do not give the SADC (Southern Africa Dictators Club) any satisfaction. Let them all fail and become the laughing stock of the world. So much for African solution for African problems.
Friday tichaonerera, ..that western project-Mdc-t is on the verge of another split again.. , The contradictions that had Tsvangirai and his cohorts assenting to joining the envisaged inclusive Government and Biti fulminating against it, confirms widespread reports that a night of long knives is imminent in MDC-T pitting the pro-Biti faction against Tsvangirai loyalists..We understand, Biti has support from former white farmers and rhodesian remnants who are angered by the clause in the GNU deal which states that under no uncertain terms land reform is irrevessible..these rhodesians along with western countries are the people who sponsor the party and friday they will be pitted against the other faction that can’t wait to be in gvt…friday mafireworks,tichaonerera….
mdc is a party and should have a decision as a party but they should know that they have the intrests of the people to fight for so they should not get into something that is not clear how their concerns will be addressed so fisrt have the demands met and then go forward from there or forget everthing else that is no deal if demands are not met period and no need for further negotiations until all the demands are met. this is the time to set the right foundation and if you start on the wrong footing everything else goes in disarray so right foundation has to be set by mdc if they are going to have success in their endavours
good deal YES bad deal NO .Morgan for more.let Matibili form govt ngaatonge tione .Mugabe look EAST and get Zimbabwe back on track if you serious about people,s plight.Mugabe haulume this time.Vakagarwa jende,vajaira kuuraya vanhu.
A TOP official from Zimbabwe’s main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has said he expects the party’s national council to give the green light to Morgan Tsvangirai to join President Robert Mugabe in a unity government when it meets on Friday.
After a day of confusion on Tuesday which highlighted divisions within the MDC in the wake of a time table set by regional leaders for the formation of a power sharing government, the MDC’s Policy Coordinator General Eddie Cross said concessions given by Mugabe at a SADC summit in Pretoria went “a long way to meeting our requests”.
Answering a question from a Zimbabwean on online discussion group, Cross said: “I have had a look at the agreement and think it goes a long way to meeting our requests. I think MDC will accept this deal and that MT (Morgan Tsvangirai) will go into government next week.”
Confusion reigned on Tuesday when the MDC issued a statement which appeared to reject a SADC communiqué released at the end of an extraordinary summit of the regional grouping, despite Tsvangirai’s approval of the document after marathon meetings.
In briefings to journalists, MDC officials told of a major rift between secretary general Tendai Biti and Tsvangirai. Biti, the officials said, is rabidly opposed to any power sharing with Mugabe while Tsvangirai sees strategic long term benefits in going into government.
The infighting in the MDC has created two groups, one loyal to Biti and the other to Tsvangirai. Ultimately, Tsvangirai’s popular appeal is expected to carry the day at Friday’s national council meeting, and a decision to join government should be made shortly after, MDC strategists say.
Mugabe was pushed by SADC leaders into making a series of concessions, including the reversal of all executive appointments he has made since a September 15 power sharing deal with opposition rivals Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, who leads a smaller faction of the MDC.
The SADC communiqué sets a time-table for the formation of an inclusive government, beginning with the passage of a Constitutional Amendment Bill by February 5; the swearing in of the Prime Minister and his two Deputy Prime Ministers by February 11; and the swearing in of Ministers and Deputy Ministers on February 13 “which will conclude the process of the formation of the inclusive government”.
The power sharing deal will see Mugabe remain President while Tsvangirai assumes the position of Prime Minister, with Mutambara coming in as one of his two deputies.
hahahahaha hahahahaha -we have plenty of zanu pf cards for you all..hahahahaha hahahaha mdc mapenzi
By Tanonoka Joseph Whande
GABORONE – The government of Botswana has urged Zimbabwean political opponents Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai, to accept the outcome of Monday’s SADC Summit and “to open a new chapter of building mutual trust and confidence for the common good of the people of Zimbabwe”.
At a SADC Summit in South Africa two days ago, SADC leaders instructed both Mugabe and Tsvangirai, who signed an agreement to form a government of national unity on September 15, 2008, “to endeavor to cause Parliament to pass the Constitutional Amendment 19 by February 5, 2009”.
The amendment creates the constitutional accommodation of a government of national unity.
SADC leaders ruled that the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Ministers be sworn in by February 11, 2009, with cabinet Minister and Deputy Ministers being sworn in on February 13, 2009, concluding the process of the formation of the inclusive government.
“The government of the Republic of Botswana welcomes the outcome of the January 26-27, 2009 Extra-Ordinary Summit which sought to assist parties to the Global Political Agreement to move forward the process of resolving the crisis of legitimacy in Zimbabwe and put an end to the suffering and difficult challenges facing people of that country,” reads a surprisingly muted statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The statement added that Botswana had hoped that the signing of the Global Political Agreement last September would usher in an atmosphere of mutual trust and confidence, good faith and commitment to genuine power sharing.
“Regrettably, this has not been the case and very little or no progress has been made in the implementation of the agreement,” says the statement.
Since the much criticized elections of June last year in which Mugabe was the sole candidate after Tsvangirai withdrew citing violence against his supporters, Botswana became the most vocal critic of Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party.
Botswana later went on record as saying it did not agree with what SADC had decreed on Zimbabwe and pursued a path different from that of the rest of SADC.
After a SADC Summit in November last year, Foreign Affairs Minister Phandu Skelemani said that Botswana wished to reiterate its strongly held view that if the Agreement could not be implemented as soon as possible, the international community should demand a re-run of the Presidential election in Zimbabwe “under international supervision so that the long suffering people of Zimbabwe can resolve the impasse by voting to decide who their true leaders should be”.
Skelemani then added that Botswana recognized that decisions in SADC are reached by consensus, after which they reflect the collective position of the organization.
“However, it would be remiss of us if we did not express our strong reservations/disagreements, as we did during the summit.”
With today’s statement, it appears as if Botswana has returned back into the much criticized SADC fold and is now in support of SADC’s approach.
“The time lines set by the Extra-ordinary Summit for the formation of an all inclusive government represent a significant and critical step to the effective implementation of the global Political Agreement,” said Botswana today. “It is our hope that what transpired in the discussions on the concerns raised by the MDC-T at the Extra-Ordinary Summit impressed upon the parties to the Global Political Agreement the importance of addressing the outstanding issues in a spirit of mutual trust and good faith which has so far been lacking.”
The Extraordinary Summit of the SADC Heads of State and Government met at the Presidential Guest House in Pretoria, South Africa, on January 26-27, 2009 to review the implementation of the Zimbabwe Global Political Agreement.
“The next few weeks will be important in terms of what the people of Zimbabwe can do to bring about national reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation of the economy,” the government of Botswana said.
However, soon after the Summit on Tuesday, the MDC said that there was no prospect of the MDC forming a unity government with Zanu-PF, describing SADC directives as malicious resolutions.
“It was our expectation that the SADC processes would be above board and be beyond reproach,” the MDC said in a statement following the release of the SADC communiqué.
“Regrettably once again we note that Mr. Mugabe was allowed to sit in during the closed session of the plenary meetings. Thus, once again, Mr. Mugabe has been unfairly allowed to be a judge in his own cause. As far as the merits are concerned, our expectations were again that SADC would come up with a just resolution to the outstanding issues in the interest of Zimbabwe and all the parties concerned.
“Quite clearly the conclusions reached as reflected in the communiqué fall far short of our expectations. Most importantly they do not accord with our National Council resolutions of the 14th of November 2008 and 12th of December 2008. It is important that finality be brought to this issue and therefore our National Council will meet on Friday 30th of January 2008 to define the party position.”
All that nonsense these zanu poofs are saying is baseless, we will not join as junior partners. zanu has no support only fighting for survival we can turn the economy around, but now as junior partners. It will take time but it is a plan that we can achieve as MDC.
I’ve never seen chiparty chine vanhu vari confused and f.u.c.k.e.d up like this Mdc-t..party officials nemasupporters acho…So, basicaly now there are 2 camps in Mdc-t , the one that supports joining gvt and another one that opposes joining gvt..mdc’s confused followers&officials are now openly contradicting themselves ..The world must be watching in astonishment these developments…A party that’s unable to determine it’s position in regards to the sadc decision..The Mdc is only confirming to the world that it’s waiting for instructions from Britain and U.S on the wayfoward after tuesday’s defeat of their scheme..You just have to look at the various news websites across the internet to see the confusion and contradiction within this western sponsored outfit…Exactly who in the mdc-t is releasing these contradictory statements….Handisati ndamboona zvakadai…..
The MDC notes with concern the fiction being spewed by speculative journalists and discredited newspapers such as The Herald that are peddling non-existent fissures within the leadership of the MDC.
The first fictitious assertion is that the MDC leadership that was in South Africa voted on whether to join the inclusive government or not.
The second illusionary assertion is that President Tsvangirai fully agreed with the position of SADC.
Nothing could be further from the truth
President Obama is in discussions to push forward strong U.N. sanctions against President Mugabe in Zimbabwe.
The claims, made by a national paper, says the President has talked to his main African advisers about launching an unprecedented, American-led diplomatic push.
Goliwog u can put your head in the sand asi mumwe pakati paBiti naMorgan achatoti mee sembudzi chete.diplomatic offensive yakambobvisa ‘dictator’ riinhi. Too many pies in the sky ndozvauraya party yako mufanami. Who is UN? Gaza yakarakashwa vakatarisa apa woti UN. Kana ichida kupinda America inongopindaka zvayakaita kuIraq yobuda yaane mututu
Abel. When are you going to stop talking through your ass hole?
what do you mdc-t supporters want to happen on friday? what about mdc-b? what of mdc-m? hahahahaha hahahahha mapenzi.being used by colonialists.they will split you into bits and pieces.
dynamos you are nothing but a piece of sh..i….te how dare you insult me like that, you fcukers you have no respect like your leader.Get him out give him a visa to holland our country will get back to normal, next time they should not call him for the meetings the guy is used to funerals he cant tell the difference. PRIME MINISTER FOR WHO? HE CAN WORSHIP MY A..R..S..E H..O..L..E HAHAHA THE GUY CANT EVEN COUNT TO TEN AND YOU THINK HE CAN LEAD THE COUNTRY
All of South Africa’s politicians work in slow motion and appear to have no motivation to resolve this crisis with conviction and equality. Remember last year after the fraudulent Zimbabwe election and beatings and murder of MDC supporters, when Mbeki said “crisis, what crisis?” That comment summed up the attitude of the SADC.
These people all live in a different greedy world of bribery and corruption. Fix that, and things will change rapidly. Everybody knows Mugabe has nothing more to offer except bribery, he ran out of ideas long ago. Zimbabwe needs a fresh start, with a new democratic approach and ideals. It’s the only way to save a decaying nation.