ZW POWER-SHARING DEADLOCK OVER CABINET – UPDATE

Prime Minister Designate – Morgan Tsvangirai

ZIMBABWE — HARARE – Rays of hope emerged in Harare’s political crisis Friday, with key politicians saying that a “solution” was close to being agreed on by all sides.

The positive signs followed overtures between President Robert Mugabe and MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai to resolve one of the main sticking issues on the agenda of the Zimbabwe power-sharing agreement.

The Zanu (PF) leadership has agreed to fight the re-emergence of strife by surrendering the Finance ministry to the MDC.

However, Zanu (PF) is still refusing with the Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs, Local Government and Information ministries.

A top Zanu (PF) officials hailed the fresh position as a way by Zanu (PF) that would “help unlock doors of the power-sharing dialogue” in Zimbabwe..

“We hope this will have an immediate impact on the talks as it will generate a better environment for dialogue,” said the source.

Like other politicians from Zanu (PF), the senior official claimed a solution had been reached.

He declined to say whether the breakthrough entailed the establishment of a new Cabinet before the close of this week (Today) as promised by President Mugabe when he returned from the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday.

Mugabe, a strong critic of the sanctions on the country who has been repeatedly accused of hampering efforts to end the deadlock, was unavailable for comment. But a source said that there was “indeed an effective solution.”

“The solution is based on two things, on ceding control of the Finance ministry to the MDC that will oversee the reconstruction of the economy as part of commitments to form a national consensus government ,” the senior Zanu (PF) official told ZimDaily. “Two, retaining control of all the governors appointed before the deal, of course all the governors are ours.”

He said, however, that Zanu (PF) has refused with the Home Affairs ministry because it claims it was part of the Unity Accord agreed between Zapu PF and Zanu (PF) in 1987. The current Home Affairs minister, Kembo Mohandi is from the Zapu camp, so was the previous incumbent John Nkomo.

So, that ministry was unavailable under the current deal, said the official.

“Its non negotiable, so the MDC should understand that it was terms of the unity accord,” said the Zanu (PF) official. “I dont think even the MDC would like Zanu (PF) to go back on agreements it would have undertaken under this deal. So they just have to accept and respect terms of the unity accord. We can’t give them the Home Affairs ministry because that would be tantamount to a repudiation of the unity accord.”

Zanu (PF)’s version of the agreement was not confirmed by anyone from the MDC, who told ZimDaily that a deal to end the country’s worst political crisis since the March elections had not been solved. However, the Zanu (PF) official claimed a Cabinet deal could emerge “within 48 hours.”

Like other politicians over the weekend, the official said that the chances for a solution were greater than at any other point in the crisis.
“The chances of success this time are greater than at any previous time,” he said. The MDC insisted that there was still a deadlock over power-sharing. And mediator Thabo Mbeki was said to be expected to break the deadlock this week with a scheduled visit to Zimbabwe. But Zanu (PF) has poured cold water over that prospect.

Said chief Zanu (PF) negotiator at the talks: “I don’t think that the issue of allocation of ministries is a matter that can be referred to the facilitator. We cannot, at the slightest difference in opinion, call outsiders to mediate. If there is thinking on such kind of an approach, it has to stop in the interest of harmonisation of relations.”

MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa insisted that the crisis still required the mediation of SADC.
“This is an urgent matter, communication lines to SADC have been activated,”
he said. – Zimdaily