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(ZIMBABWE GUARDIAN) Maridadi: MDC-T's daring political jester

Maridadi: MDC-T's daring political jester
By: Nancy Lovedale
Posted: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 11:54 pm

THE drama that took place on Wednesday regarding the Prime Minister's spokesman, James Maridadi cannot go unchallenged. The spokesman played the role of the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet and made an announcement that a law that was passed by Parliament in 2007 (the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act) and its accompanying regulations was "null and void".

Maridadi repeated what PM Tsvangirai said on the day of the publication of the regulations by Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment minister, Saviour Kasukuwere.

What was interesting and troubling, to say the least, was that Maridadi went on to represent Cabinet, when he is not employed by the Public Service Commission (PSC) in that position.

It was also interesting and troubling that Maridadi, whose MDC-T party has been crying for the respect of the rule of law, is representing a group of people who are trying to flout Zimbabwe's laws. Even civil society, including Zimbabwe's growing list of 'lawyers for human rights' and political commentators, were flabbergasted by Maridadi's comments this time.

The MDC-T cannot simply cherry-pick legislation that it sees fit and tries to play the role of Parliament by speaking ill of laws that are not popular with their funders.

We have seen a growing tendency in the MDC-T party where knee-jerk reactions are left to the likes of Maridadi and party spokespersons, like Nelson Chamisa, remain tight-lipped as if to deliberately cause pandemonium and misinform the public; or for fear of being reined in by the president.

President Mugabe cannot rein in Maridadi because he is not a government employee, but Mr Tsvangirai's 'PA in the parallel government'. He simply does not have a job description that is approved by the PSC. How he replaced well-spoken George Sibotshiwe, after the formation of the inclusive Government, is anyone's guess.

By giving Maridadi the right to cause confusion, the MDC-T party knew what exactly was going on. Given the way that Mr Chamisa and the rest of the MDC-T coterie love the media, it was surprising that this important piece of news was left to the naive Maridadi to break. Remember prime minister Tsvangirai's statement at the GPA breakthrough, "We have a deal!" The PM would have made the announcement himself, or left it to the media-loving Chamisa.

In what capacity did Maridadi make the announcement? PM Tsvangirai does not chair Cabinet. He chairs the Council of Ministers. The decision to 'nullify and void' the regulations, according to Maridadi was made by Cabinet, so why should the announcement be made by Maridadi? What formal channels did he use for that purpose? Why did the MDC-T not use Cabinet and Presidential Secretary, Misheck Sibanda?

President Mugabe's press secretary, George Charamba, once remarked that Maridadi did not have the right qualifications to represent the Office of the Prime Minister and was not employed, or paid, by the PSC. So as far as government structures are concerned, Maridadi is a non-entity.

One cannot stop thinking that the MDC-T party is under pressure from its funders to nullify that law. They are now using the likes of Maridadi to cause despondency and misinformation inorder to buy time or hoodwink their funders until election time.

This (mis)information was well-timed to coinincide with PM Tsvangirai's visit to the EU soon. Everyone knows that the PM will be under pressure from the EU leaders regarding the indigenisation and empowerment regulations and his recent media statements.

We just now wait with baited breath to see how they will play this one out, now that President Mugabe has said the law stands and only the regulations will be reviewed.

PM Tsvangirai will have to sharpen his tongue and pull up his socks as he makes the 'holy pilgrimage' to the West this time. He has 'a case to answer' to his funders over his anti-gay slur, and his recent remarks that President Mugabe is "here to stay".

We also wonder if he will visit Southwark Cathedraw this time; where he was infamously booed and heckled by Zimbabweans in London.

Anyone who reads Maridadi and his many diplomatic gaffes seriously and rushes to publish everything that he says does so at their own risk.

Maridadi caused a media and diplomatic frenzy. He even had the German ambassador to Zimbabwe fooled. Ambassador Albrecht Conze said in a statement that the time had come "for a sound and unexcited discussion" about empowering the black majority " when he heard that the indigenisation law was being 'nullified and voided".

It is surprising that Germany would encourage the MDC-T to flout Zimbabwean laws, by nullifying legislation passed by parliament, yet sings the 'rule of law' and extends sanctions (through the EU) on Zimbabwe over alleged non-respect for "the rule of law".

Anyway, Germany's agenda in Zimbabwe is clear. At the prime minister's visit to that country, Chancellor Angela Merkel said point blank that she wanted "expropriated white land" to be returned. The victim, all of a sudden, was the villain; and the MDC-T plays along with that idea.

Media houses in the West went into overdrive over Maridadi's gaffe and even their beloved SW Radio Africa could not tell the heads or tails of that story, until the president's clarification. They had an interesting headline: "Confusion over ‘suspension’ of indigenisation regulations." That is exactly what the MDC-T wanted -- to cause some confusion.

To the MDC-T, we say, "You live by the media, you die by the media." If they keep playing these games and flip-flopping on issues of national importance, they will lose the support they are now beginning to take for granted; but given the short memory of their supporting media, they will keep on "getting away with murder".

In the meantime we ask the million-dollar question: Who pays James Maridadi for playing the jester?

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*Nancy Lovedale is a Zimbabwean living and working in Beijing, China. She can be contacted via nancy_lovedale *** yahoo.com

Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, JAMES MARIDADI, NANCY LOVEDALE

posted by MrK @ 12:34 AM