14/06/2013 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
COMMENT - " The MDCs were left seething with anger on Thursday after Mugabe ordered elections to be held at the end of next month. " Would the ANC have been left 'seething with anger' if the National Party had announced nationwide elections with universal suffrage a month away? No way, the would have said 'hold them today'. The MDC is all about winning elections, no matter how many people pay the price for it. They are a mercenary party, who cannot face the people of Zimbabwe and convince them to vote for them on the strength of their policies. No one wants a return to ESAP, which is what privatisation, deregulation and free trade mean. - MrK
MDC secretary for legal affairs and education minister David Coltart has told colleagues they are better off pursuing domestic solutions to the bitter row over election dates instead of appealing to the regional SADC grouping for help.
Coltart spoke as the top leadership of the MDC formations travelled to Mozambique for a SADC extra-ordinary summit where they are hoping President Robert Mugabe will be compelled to reverse his decision to hold elections on July 31.
Addressing a public meeting at the Bulawayo Press Club Thursday evening Coltart said: “It is not worthwhile to be running to SADC all the time.
“The irony of it is that when we take our problems to them we attract criticism and embarrass ourselves.
“We are a sovereign country and I am a proud Zimbabwean. I do not believe that as a nation we should be guided by any outside country in solving our problems.”
The MDCs were left seething with anger on Thursday after Mugabe ordered elections to be held at the end of next month.
The Zanu PF leader also used a presidential decree to circumvent Parliament and pass the necessary amendments to the country’s electoral legislation.
Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa said going through Parliament would have made it impossible to comply with a Constitutional Court ruling ordering Mugabe to call the elections before July 31.
Prime Minister and MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai has dismissed the court ruling as a political directive although he plans to challenge Mugabe’s proclamation before the same court.
Coltart however, said the court order, which followed an application by a Harare-based political activist, was binding.
“I am not one of those who say we should ignore the Constitutional Court ruling because it is binding. I also do not criticise the content of the ruling,” he said.
“The correct procedure in my view would be to go back to the Constitutional Court and say it would be difficult to comply with the ruling.”
Labels: 2013 ELECTIONS (ZW), DAVID COLTART, MDC, PATRICK CHINAMASA, SADC
posted by MrK @ 5:51 PM
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