ZANU-PF’s insincerity has delayed political settlement, says Chamisa

ZANU-PF’s insincerity has delayed political settlement, says Chamisa
Written by George Chellah in Harare, Zimbabwe
Sunday, November 30, 2008 3:21:11 PM

ZANU-PF’s insincerity has stood in the doorway of an amicable political settlement, MDC spokesperson Nelson Chamisa has said. Chamisa told The Post yesterday that the ruling ZANU-PF was being dishonest with negotiations for an all-inclusive government.

“The MDC notes with concern ZANU-PF’s intransigence and its continued lack of sincerity which have stood in the doorway of an amicable political settlement; a settlement which does not reduce the MDC to a junior partner when it is the MDC which won credible elections on 29 March,” Chamisa said.

“There is a further threat to the talks. Despite undertaking to respect citizens’ rights as enshrined in the Global Political Agreement signed by the political principals in Harare on 15 September 2008, 14 MDC activists from Banket, including a two-year old child in Mashonaland West province are missing after they were abducted from their homes in pre-dawn raids a month ago.”

He said the state was in contempt of court after it failed to bring the activists to court despite a High Court order to that effect.

Chamisa maintained that the MDC negotiators in South Africa, led by secretary-general Tendai Biti, would stand by the National Council’s resolution.

“The MDC has left for the talks to take further its compelling case following the national council’s rejection of the SADC recommendations of 9 November 2008, which skirted the major sticking issues that have scuttled the negotiations,” Chamisa said. “The negotiators will raise issues regarding the facilitation, ZANU-PF’s lack of sincerity in the dialogue as well as the reductionist tendency to reduce and narrow down the sticking issues to the ministry of Home Affairs, and lately to Constitutional Amendment Number 19.

“The MDC National Council met on Friday, November 14, 2008 and rejected the SADC resolution which sought to reduce the sticking points only to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The MDC notes that ZANU-PF initially said the only sticking issue was the Ministry of Finance, and then changed it to Home Affairs and now to Constitutional Amendment Number 19.”

He explained that the national council - the MDC’s supreme-decision making body - resolved that the party would not join the inclusive government until all the sticking issues were addressed.

“The sticking issues include the equitable distribution of ministerial portfolios, the composition and powers of the National Security Council, the outstanding issue of the provincial governors, the appointment of permanent secretaries and ambassadors, the correction of ZANU-PF’s fraudulent alteration of the Global Political Agreement of 15 September 2008 and the enactment of Constitutional Amendment Number 19,” said Chamisa.

Discussion on the establishment of an all-inclusive government between ZANU-PF and the two MDC formations on draft Constitutional Amendment Number 19 Bill commenced in South Africa last week.

The rival political parties have started looking at the draft Constitutional Amendment Number 19 Bill, which seeks to create the portfolios of Prime Minister, his two deputies and nine non-constituency senators, and pave way for other constitutional amendments.