Maravi

(TALKZIMBABWE) Tsvangirai boycotts office over Bennett

Tsvangirai boycotts office over Bennett
Nancy Pasipanodya
Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:53:00 +0000

PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai refused to come to his government office in protest at the detention of his party's financier and treasurer Roy Bennett who was indicted yesterday by a Mutare magistrate.

PM Tsvangirai on Wednesday also cancelled a weekly meeting of the Council of Ministers which he chairs as part of his responsibility under the inclusive Government.

Bennett is accused of possessing arms for the purposes of banditry, terrorism and inciting acts of insurgency.

He was arrested on February 13 as the new cabinet was sworn in and charged with plotting to overthrow President Robert Mugabe. The charges were later downgraded to possession of weapons with the intention to commit sabotage, banditry and insurgency..

"The Council of Ministers (meeting on Thursday) has been cancelled. The Prime Minister has suspended his coming to the office until the issue of Senator Bennett is resolved," James Maridadi, a spokesperson for PM Tsvangirai, said on Thursday.

"He wants that matter resolved immediately.

"The prime minister was keen to meet President Mugabe to talk about Senator Bennett's issue but all communication was not successful."

President Mugabe has refused to swear in Bennett whose charges are linked to a cache of weapons found in the eastern border town of Mutare, southern Zimbabwe.

In statement earlier on Wednesday, the MDC-T party said Bennett's detention pending the outcome of the trial in the high court was a "serious attack on the credibility" of Zimbabwe's power-sharing government.

"The MDC regards today's indictment and subsequent detention of treasurer-general and deputy agriculture minister-designate Bennett as yet another serious attack on the credibility of the inclusive Government," the party said.

On Wednesday, PM Tsvangirai unsuccessfully made several attempts to meet President Mugabe, Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Attorney General Johannes Tomana over the issue.

“The Prime Minister was keen to meet president Mugabe to talk about Senator Bennett’s issue but all communication was not successful,” said Maridadi.

Charges against Bennett date back to 2006 before the implementation of the Global Political Agreement, a precursor to the formation of the inclusive Government in September 2008.

The PM and his party's secretary general Tendai Biti will address a press conference today regarding Bennett's arrest, among other issues.

They have also called for an emergency crisis meeting of the MDC-T party to chart the way forward. The party backtracked on a threat to pull out of the inclusive Government saying their party members had, in an online poll, voted overwhelmingly to stay in.

A University of Zimbabwe constitutional law lecturer who spoke to the Zimbabwe Guardian on condition of anonymity accused PM Tsvangirai and the MDC-T party of interfering in the country's justice system and said the activities of politicians should not affect the independence of the judiciary.

"Remember (PM) Tsvangirai at one time issued a letter of assurance for Bennett," said the lecturer. "This cannot be allowed to happen. These charges have nothing to do with the inclusive Government, therefore, Tsvangirai should stop interfering.

"Besides, they stem from 2006 before the formation of the inclusive Government. There's no reason for him (Tsvangirai) to meet President Mugabe over the issue, or the justice minister or the attorney general.

"The law should take its course without interference by politicians."

Labels: MORGAN TSVANGIRAI, ROY BENNETT, TERRORISM, TREASON

posted by MrK @ 5:57 PM