“A report by the Khupe-led committee presented by Kwanele Hlabangana and gleaned by NewsDay Weekender revealed that the team met British ambassador to Zimbabwe Melanie Robinson, US ambassador to Zimbabwe Brian Nichols, European Union ambassador Timo Olkkonen among others, and the issue of Chamisa not being part of the process kept coming up,” reported Bulawayo 24.
"In key issues raised by the diplomatic community in our recent engagements, although they applaud and appreciate the great initiative taken by His Excellency ED Mnangagwa and the political leaders that participated as presidential candidates in the 2018 harmonised elections, that of coming together to establish POLAD, they are all of the view that the on-going dialogue process should rather be broad-based, with key stakeholders that include the MDC Alliance, civic society, religious groups, white commercial farmers and business," the report read in part.
"Both the US and EU ambassadors emphasised their desire to have South Africa play a leading role in the dialogue process with former President Thabo Mbeki as the mediator.”
The root cause of Zimbabwe’s economic and political mess is the country’s failure to hold free, fair and credible elections resulting in the country being stuck with a corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF regime for 40 years.
The 2008 to 2013 GNU was supposed to implement the democratic reforms and thus stop Zanu PF rigging elections. Sadly it failure to do so because Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friend took their eyes off the ball and failed to get even one reform implemented.
Mnangagwa blatantly rigged the July 2018 elections, the regime is illegitimate and has no democratic mandate to govern.
By participating in the flawed and illegal elections MDC A and all the other opposition parties and candidates gave the process and hence the result some modicum of credibility and legitimacy. They were warned of the folly of participating but they continued regardless out of selfish greed, as one opposition leader, David Coltart, Senator and Treasurer General of the MDC A admitted.
“The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections,” confessed Senator Coltart in his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe.
“The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”
Here are the principle objectives of the proposed all stakeholders’ meeting:
- To give Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF cronies the opportunity to accept the present political system has failed and accept the need for the regime to step down and have an orderly transfer of power to the new administration to emerge out of the deliberations. The meeting is not to come up with any power sharing arrangement designed to give legitimacy to this illegitimate Zanu PF regime. It is a historic fact that Zanu PF has dragged the nation into this political and economic mess and it is inconceivable that the party will play a meaningful role in the reconstruction phase. Any insistence by the party on playing a further role will only be seen for what it is - Zanu PF holding the nation to ransom. That is the one thing that got us into this mess in the first place and it must not be permitted for even one more day!
- By participating in a flawed and illegitimate electoral process the MDC A and all those who participated in the July 2018 or other past elections have disqualified themselves for playing a role in the interim administration.
- An interim administration composed of carefully selected Zimbabweans helped by outsiders from the UN and other international bodies will be appointed and tasked to implemented the democratic reforms designed to end the country’s curse of rigged elections and bad governance. The interim administration will also be tasked to revive economic activities and restore basic services such as supply of clean doing water, education and health care. The interim administration will be responsible for ensure the next elections are free, fair and credible and handover power to the democratically elected government.
A NUMBER of high ranking government officials are under probe for human rights violations and risk being slapped with individual sanctions if found to be trampling upon citizens' rights, a senior US official has warned.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking during a teleconference from his Washington base with Zimbabwean journalists Thursday, Assistant Secretary Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, Robert Destro, said if the US gathered credible evidence of human rights abuses by other top officials not on its sanctions list, the US would not hesitate to place them under restrictive measures.
There individuals like Professor Mthuli Ncube and Minister Coventry plus opposition leaders like Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti and David Coltart who are playing a pivotal role in propping up this regime. They must be added to the sanctions list to send a clear message that they are sell-out activities will not be tolerated.
This government does not have any test kits and has just obtained kits to protect staff working with suspected corona virus patients. God only knows how many people with the virus have been spreading the virus undetected and for how long!
ReplyDeleteZimbabwe's health care service is in a sorry state, it is not geared to cope with the serious challenges of corona virus. It is not so much the communication plan that is required here but the health care service plan!
"Coronavirus is the work of God punishing countries that imposed sanctions on us!" said Minister Oppah Muchinguri Kashiri
ReplyDeleteThe pandemic has yet to run its course, if there should be an outbreak in Zimbabwe; what then Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri! What propaganda lie will you say then?
"My party's position is that the 2018 harmonized elections were not free fair and credible. This has been confirmed by the US Embassy's report as well as other observers and stakeholders, which also justify MRP's position that the outcome of the 2018 elections is not a true reflection of the people's revolutionary party's support or lack of it," you said.
ReplyDelete"ZANU-PF's coup government has been busy spending the taxpayers money in what they call re-engagement process and the so called campaign for the removal of illegal sanctions against Zimbabwe. Yet they refuse to just follow the simple conditions for the removal of sanctions because of greedy, selfishness and their zeal to retain power at all cost even at the expense of the people they purport to represent."
I totally agree with you there!
Zanu PF has held this nation to ransom for the last 40 years, dragging us deeper and deeper into this economic and political abyss. With unemployment a dizzying 90% and 34% of the population now living in extreme poverty - they cannot afford even one decent meal a day much less other basic necessities such as education for the children and health care.
The coronavirus outbreak is the disease we have dreaded and now it is here. The virus will will cause untold human suffering and death because the nation is ill prepared for it. Decades of neglect have impoverished the nation and left its health care services in a sorry, sorry state. Even big referral hospitals like Parerenyatwa and Mpilo Hospital regularly run out of basic stuff like painkiller and have no clean running water. The country will not cope with coronavirus, that is obvious.
The tragic situation in Zimbabwe is man-made, caused by decades of bad governance, and it cannot be allowed to continue. Zimbabwe must implement the democratic reforms necessary to end the curse of rigged elections and bad governance.
Enough is enough! Zanu PF must not be allowed to hold this nation to ransom any longer!
@ Phunyukabemphethe
ReplyDelete“But why does the MDC continue to participate in these elections, giving them the legitimacy they don't deserve?” you ask.
The simple and short answer is greed. GREED!
The one thing Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies learned during the 2008 to 2013 GNU was that, given the right bribe, Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends will forget about implementing the democratic reforms agreed in the Global Political Agreement. Mugabe saw to it that the MDC leaders were pampered throughout the GNU years; ministerial limos, generous salaries, a US$ 4 million mansion for Tsvangirai, etc., etc.
“Mazivanhu eMDC adzidza kudya anyerere!” (MDC leaders have learned to enjoy the gravy train lifestyle, they will never rock the boat!) was the cynical boasting by Zanu PF cronies as to why MDC leaders were not implementing even one reform during the GNU.
Zanu PF has also learned that the opposition will participate in election regardless how flawed and illegal the process got as long as Zanu PF allowed them to win a few gravy train seats. Tendai Biti, David Coltart and a few other MDC leaders won the few bait seats.
It is still worthwhile the opposition contesting even in the rural areas where Zanu PF’s strangle hold is strongest. Parties get a cut of the Political Party Finance Act payout on the basis of the garnered national vote. In the current financial year MDC A got $3.4 million and Chamisa as party leader pocketed 20%, $680 000!
Nelson Chamisa and the MDC MPs and senators will continue to call for the implementation of the reforms, they are only paying lip service to the cause of free, fair and credible elections. They will never ever boycott the elections to force the reforms; they will never ever forfeit the $680 000 and the gravy train seats!