Morgan Tsvangirai - peace deal - Zimbabwe

Mugabe grabs key ministries, jeopardises power-sharing deal

Saturday 11 October 2008

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe (left) unilaterally allocated three important government ministries to his ZANU-PF party. The move angered the opposition MDC, who claims the power-sharing deal is now "in jeopardy".

Saturday 11 October 2008

By Reuters (text) / Alex Duval Smith, France 24 correspondent in Cape Town (video)

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has allocated three important government ministries to his ZANU-PF party, angering the opposition and threatening a power-sharing deal.

A government notice on Saturday showed Mugabe had allocated to his party the powerful ministries of defence, home affairs -- which is in charge of the police -- and finance, a crucial portfolio to the resuscitation of Zimbabwe's devastated economy.

Mugabe and main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai have been deadlocked over how to share key ministries and on Friday agreed to call in Thabo Mbeki, the former South African president, who has mediated in negotiations to end a long-running political crisis.

The cabinet impasse has outraged ordinary Zimbabweans who had hoped a Sept. 15 power-sharing agreement would end an economic meltdown.

MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said the opposition had not agreed to the allocation.

"This is ZANU-PF's arrogant wish list that puts the whole deal into jeopardy. It is unilateral, contemptuous and outrageous," Chamisa said.

"The MDC totally and absolutely rejects this nonsense. ZANU-PF is taking people for a ride and there is a price for that."

The September power-sharing deal allows Mugabe, in power since Zimbabwe's independence from Britain in 1980, to retain the presidency and chair the cabinet, while Tsvangirai, as prime minister, would head a council of ministers supervising the cabinet.

ZANU-PF will have 15 seats in the cabinet, Tsvangirai's MDC 13 and a splinter MDC faction led by Arthur Mutambara three posts, giving the oppposition a combined majority.

According to the government gazette, Mugabe's ZANU-PF will also be in charge of the Foreign Affairs, Justice and the Media and Information ministries, while the MDC will take control of the Health, Public Service and Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs portfolios.

While the politicians bicker, Zimbabwe's economy continues to implode with official inflation at a new record 231 million percent, while shortages of food, foreign currency, water and electricity continue to bite.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe on Saturday introduced a new higher denomination 50,000 Zimbabwe dollar note, barely two weeks after launching 10,000 and 20,000 dollar notes.

Morgan Tsvangirai - peace deal - Zimbabwe

[3] reactions :

11/10/2008 00:36:07 Alert a moderator

square plug in round hole

By Anonyme - sevilla ,spain

mugabe wrongly accused the west of instabilty in his country , but now he is starting a fresh problem, which the west has no hands in , he should avoid war at all cost
11/10/2008 14:40:03 Alert a moderator

Mugabe allocates key ministries to zanu pf

By Anonyme - Zimbabwe

l m totally hurt by this act can someone tell me where we are heading. this is not fair. Dialog in zim will never work as long as mugabe is in power. We want to hear the UN's position on this new painful development.
11/10/2008 13:15:03 Alert a moderator

Away with selfish leadership & suppression of the masses

By Mukoma Democracy - KwaZvimba

There is no better evidence of how we Zimbabweans have been and continue to be suppressed at the expense of some selfish and arrogant carcasses like Mugabe. Where is the world looking right now? This is totally unfair. Why can't the AU condemn such ruthless dictatorship? Is it because it is a fellow african leader, called Mugabe, under scrutiny? What about the masses suffering? They are in need of relief. And the world stands and looks. I am angered by this i tell you. In fact, if the world continues watching without taking action, there are some souls who are going to live to regret why they were in influencial positions but failed to take any action < just like the photographer who took a picture of a malnourished weak child who was crawling to the nearest food distribution point, in a hunger striken country in Africa, to get food while a vulture stood nearby to wait for when the child would pass out. That photographer did the unthinkable by leaving that child there. He committed suicide days later after realising that he could have done something better.> Please Mr Secretary General of the UN, let us see your powers coming into use. That is why the UN was created, to protect those most vulnerable to vultures like MUGABE!!! I rest my case