PIC: From L-R MDC Chief Negotiator Tendai Biti, President Morgan Tsvangirai and SADC Mediator Thabo Mbeki in whom Zimbabwean hopes for the better are vested if only they unanimously put Zimbabweans ahead of all else
The Zimbabwe feuding political protagonists are back to the drawing board over stalled negotiations to form an inclusive Government desperately needed to regularise Robert Mugabe’s electoral theft that culminated in his disputed and unrecognised re-inauguration as President of the country on 27 June 2008.
In a classical example of what happens when the cart is put before the horse the protagonists are back to square one after months of futile attempts to circumvent the Global Political Agreement (GPA)and gain everything by Zanu PF with support from Sadc mediator Thabo Mbeki and Prof Mutambara’s MDC PF.
The GPA states at Article XX clause 20(1) (3) (j) that President Mugabe;
“Shall, pursuant to this Agreement, appoint the Prime Minister pending the enactment of the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment No.19 as agreed by the Parties;” [my emphasis]
To kick start the implementation of the GPA the geriatric despotic “President” Robert Mugabe had to appoint the Prime Minister and his deputies as well as the Vice Presidents and set up the team to drive the implementation of the agreement.
But no he had other ideas to plunge the agreement into chaos as he has done with the country’s politics and economy.
He appointed the Vice Presidents alright but not before he had attempted to steal ownership of the agreement from the other parties to the agreement and implement it as he deemed fit.
It did not work and he was left in a quandary as his cynical efforts were severely exposed by the alert MDC while the MDC PF went all over the place to try and short-circuit the process and realise its gains.
After two months of trial and error Mugabe has been compelled by SADC to wake up to the reality that he cannot form a legitimate Government on his own and gain its international recognition.
The problem though is that his eyesight has deteriorated so much with age he relies on Patrick Chinamasa to read out the agreement to him and he always omits or puts a spin to the wording in the agreement.
The MDC negotiators must first and foremost request the Mediator to cause Mugabe to act as was agreed in clause 20(1) (3) (j) of the GPA before they can negotiate lest they will waste time and effort in a process Mugabe is not willing to live by.
This is so because the agreement at Article XXV states;
“25. Commencement
This Agreement shall enter into force upon its signature by the Parties.”
It couldn’t be clearer than that could it? And for Mugabe, Mbeki and Prof Mutambara who loathe Tsvangirai for his poor academic qualifications to fail to understand and implement that is tragic.
If the Mediator cannot secure that undertaking from Mugabe the negotiators must demand that he resigns and the AU appoints his replacement soonest.
Constitutional Amendment No 19 (CA No 19) should not cause problems in its drafting as it should capture the spirit and letter of the GPA which states at Article XX at Clause 20 (1) (1) last paragraph which reads;
“In the exercise of executive authority, the President, Vice Presidents, the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers must have regard to the principles and spirit underlying the formation of the Inclusive Government and accordingly act in a manner that seeks to promote cohesion both inside and outside government" as read with Article XXIV of the GPA reproduced in full hereunder.
“24. Interim Constitutional amendments
The Parties hereby agree:
24.1 that the constitutional amendments which are necessary for the implementation of this agreement shall be passed by parliament and assented to by the President as Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment Act No 19. The Parties undertake to unconditionally support the enactment of the said Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment No 19;
24.2 to include in Constitutional Amendment No19 the provisions contained in Chapters 4 and 13, and section 121 of the draft Constitution that the Parties executed at Kariba on 30 September 2007 (Kariba draft).”
It is not clear why the parties have been called to negotiate an agreed position but we are tempted to speculate that the draft has been twisted to reflect the fraudulent alterations effected to the GPA by Patrick Chinamasa and his octogenarian leader in Zanu PF.
The critical issue is not who drafted what but what wording was used and whether or not that wording captures the spirit and letter of the GPA.
If Mbeki was an honest mediator which unfortunately facts expose he is not, he would have simply returned the draft with notes on where it did not reflect what was agreed before him without the necessity of staging another talk show that will result in a stalemate over peripherals.
Zanu PF and MDC formations cannot be seriously expected to oppose a draft that captures what they agreed unless the initial agreement was faked which appears to be the case justifying the current negotiations.
Another issue that appears to have necessitated the current round of negotiations is the reaslisation that SADC erred in resolving that the only outstanding power sharing concern was over management of the Home Affairs Ministry when clearly that is not the case.
Unless the draft of CA NO 19 takes into account the disputed power sharing issues concerning appointment of Governors, Permanent Secretaries and other Statutory positions proportionate to the formula used in allocating the number of Ministerial portfolios for each party, the MDC is better off opposing the passage of the constitutional amendment that will for all intends and purposes be the basis upon which the interim regime emerging from the GPA will be premised.
Zanu PF and its leader appear to hold the belief that passage of CA No 19 is forgone. That is a dangerous premise on which the Party leader is proceeding. MDC support is crucial.
The benefits that accrue to the party from its involvement to regularise a fraudulent electoral process could come back to haunt the party if not carefully managed at the stage of passing CA No 19.
The National Security Council’s role in Governance must be tacitly explained and its operational limits clearly defined.
It does not help matters when amid heated disputes Mugabe extents Dr Gono’s Governorship of a Reserve Bank that will fall under an MDC Minister without seeking the recommendations of the said minister and the Party that will oversee the function of that Government portfolio.
Even if MDC were in favour of Gono’s contract extension, they now must oppose his unilateral appointment and cause Mugabe to rescind it pronto.
The people of Zimbabwe are not in favour of the fraudulent GPA government that has disenfranchised them and the longer the parties haggle while economic woes pile on the shoulders of the ordinary people of Zimbabwe the more disenchanted they become.
Instead of wasting days on this hopeless negotiation process the MDC must make a tactical withdrawal from the GPA and let Mugabe and his geriatrics form whatever illegal Government they like so that he will realise the folly of his wooden headedness.
The trials and tribulations Zanu PF and its demented leader have put the Nation through exceed tolerance limits of the most stubborn mule yet Zimbabweans have endured with exceptional demeanour and resourcefulness.
The MDC is already being portrayed as part of the Zanu PF inspired hardships facing the populace and they either must force through the concessions they want to move the country forward or simply absolve themselves of the responsibility unless the democratic process that took place on 29 March is respected by ZANU PF.
That is the strongest position that the MDC holds and must build on for the betterment of our country.
It is no use advising Zanu PF and MDC PF because those political formations are arrogant and supremacist they never take kindly to any advice or national concerns.
Only the MDC has the trust of the majority to make a difference to their lives as they have hitherto listened to the suffering masses and must continue doing so to retain their trust.
The people say No to a GPA government that leaves Zanu PF in sole charge of national governance.
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