President Emmerson Mnangagwa is a man on a mission to get international acceptance as a great statesman. So, he was thrilled to bits when he received an official invitation to attend King Charles III’s coronation. A chance to hobnob with world leaders was, per se, a public endorsement that he too is a world leaders.
If only he had known what Commonwealth Secretary General, Patricia Scotland, would say; he would have given the chance a miss!
“Pleased to welcome the President of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa to Marlborough House for a courtesy call. The President and I discussed a range of issues, including Zimbabwe’s ongoing application to re-join Commonwealth and reaffirmed the commitment to the values of the Commonwealth,” said Scotland in a tweet.
Last year Zanu PF went on a diplomatic charm offensive to get other African countries to support Zimbabwe’s application to be readmitted into the Commonwealth. The party was using the rejoining of the club as a platform to demand the lifting of sanctions imposed by the West on the regime. But most important of all, Zanu PF would have seen the readmission as proof the regime can rig the 2023 elections and still get political legitimacy.
The Commonwealth was not going to deny Zanu PF political legitimacy after readmitting Zimbabwe a few months earlier knowing fully well the regime was set to rigging the 2023. A Commonwealth endorsement would have given SADC leaders, most of whom are in the Commonwealth too, the country to grant Zanu PF legitimacy too.
The Commonwealth rejected Zimbabwe’s 2018 application to be readmit into the club because Zanu PF failed to hold free, fair and credible elections that year. Secretary General Scotland’s tweet was the equivalent of the Headmaster pointing two fingers at his eyes and then at the misbehaving student in public - “I have my eyes on you!”
Whilst is the past SADC leaders have turned a blind eye to Zanu PF vote rigging and granted the regime political legitimacy regardless. The regional body will be loather to do the same again this time when Zimbabwe has been on the international spotlight over the vast wealth amassed by Mugabe’s wife and daughter.
The recent Al Jazeera Gold Mafia has proven beyond all doubt that corruption is the main cause of Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown, not sanctions as the regime has often claimed. The documentary has revealed President Mnangagwa as just a just and ruthless buffoon, not the statesman he pretends to be.
SADC leaders know they cannot endorse another Zanu PF rigged elections and grant Mnangagwa political legitimacy without calling into question their own commitment to democracy and good governance.
There is a group photograph of the crowned King Charles III with Commonwealth Heads of State and Government who attended the 6 May 2023 coronation. President Mnangagwa is conspicuous with his absence from the group photo.
“President Mnangagwa is the one taking the photo!” suggested one, mockingly.
“His Excellency the President, Dr E D Mnangagwa, has just met Baroness Scotland, the secret general of the Commonwealth. The meeting reviewed progress Zimbabwe has made along the road to readmission,” reads George Charamba’s tweet.
Not even the spin-doctor, Zimbabwe’s answer to Adolf Hitler’s Joseph Goebbels, could disguise the UK trip had been a complete disaster for Mnangagwa. He is rigging the 2023 elections is one thing but getting political legitimacy is proving a bridge too-far.
Indeed, Mnangagwa had hoped his UK trip to witness King Charles III’s coronation was going to confirm his position as a great statesman only for him to be shunned.
He needs to rig these 2023 elections but doing so could force SADC to finally deny him political legitimacy and thus indirectly delivering his own coup de grace!
The Constitutional Court (ConCourt) has dismissed MDC-T leader Douglas Mwonzora's bid to delay elections due this year through an application that sought nullification of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC)'s electoral boundaries delimitation report in favour of a fresh process.
ReplyDeleteIn a brief judgement on Monday, Chief Justice Luke Malaba, chairing a full Constitutional Court bench, said the court did not have jurisdiction in the matter.
The Chief Justice said the opposition politician failed to show his cause for action.
Mwonzora was seeking nullification of the delimitation report and a consequential relief for postponement of elections by six months if his application was allowed.
This is just one of those utterly pointless political gimmicks by brainless idiots with nothing better to do than waste time! Zanu PF is rigging these elections and Mwonzora’s court challenge was not going to do anything to address the key problem of the rigging. We have serious problems and should not waste time on trivial issues!
THE European Union recently dispatched an exploratory delegation to assess Zimbabwe's preparedness to hold free and fair elections, as well as to gauge the legislative climate ahead of the 2023 polls.
ReplyDeleteThe delegation was in the country for 10 days.
Following the visit, the delegation will prepare a report of its observations and submit it to President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the government for comments.
In the disputed 2018 elections, the EU observer mission presented its findings through chief observer Elmar Brok, member of the European Parliament, to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec), the government, Parliament, civil society and political parties.
The report outlined shortfalls which included problems with the legal framework, the role of the electoral commission, and various abuses of human rights and political rights of the opposition.
It urged reforms accompanied by the requisite political will of all stakeholders.
The EU urged the government of Zimbabwe to prioritise the furtherance of democratic transition in the country.
The recommendations made by the bloc after the 2018 elections included the need for Zimbabwe to address four key areas: the independence of the Zec, improved level playing field, the legal framework and the inclusiveness of the process.
There are three things to be noted here:
Zanu PF has failed to implement even one of the 23 recommendation in the EU Observer Mission report. And therefore it is naive, to say the least, to expect 2023 elections to be any different from the 2018 the EU judge to be not to “international standard!”
CCC knows that not even one reform recommendation was implemented and yet they are still hell bent on participating in these flawed elections regardless because they are after the few gravy train seats Zanu PF is offering as bait.
It is the assurance that CCC will participate no matter how flawed the process get that has given Zanu PF the confidence to ignore demands for reforms. We cannot ignore that the opposition is now hunting with the hounds and running with the hare.
A LOCAL think-tank, the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU), says the upcoming elections are unlikely to be different from previous ones held under the Robert Mugabe era, which were underlined by violence and weaponisation of the youth by political elites.
ReplyDeleteZimbabwe's previous elections have mainly been characterised by political violence since the days of the late former president Robert Mugabe.
While President Emmerson Mnangagwa's regime has been trying to distance itself from the excesses of the Mugabe era, reality has been knocking, with research showing the shrinking of democratic space since 2017, when he came into power through a military coup.
According to the RAU report titled: "What will be different in the 2023 elections?" by Larisa Chikanya, elections are not likely to be different from the old regime.
The trouble with the opposition promising change when they know the system is so flawed it will never deliver change is the ordinary people lose faith in democracy and the rule of law. What we need is competent opposition who will get the reform implemented to ensure free and fair elections. Democracy and rule of law works but only when it is given a chance to do so!
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa was not part of the heads of State and government who had a photo opportunity with King Charles III because Zimbabwe is not a Commonwealth member, Zanu-PF spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa has said.
ReplyDeleteMutsvangwa was responding to reports that Mnangagwa was snubbed during King Charles III' coronation at the weekend.
He also shared his party's excitement over Mnangagwa's attendance of the coronation, describing the invitation as a sign of thawing of the frosty relationship between London and Harare.
Mnangagwa was one of the 90 heads of State and government who attended the coronation on Saturday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the burial of national hero Abraham Kabasa in Harare yesterday, Mutsvangwa said: "We are not a member of the Commonwealth, the President is determined that we should be readmitted into the group of nations.”
Mnangagwa is not in the group photo because he is not a “real” statesman in that he does not have the democratic mandate of the people of Zimbabwe. He rigged the elections to become president and if he fails to hold free and fair elections this year he will remain an outsider pretending to be a statesman.
Zanu PF was able to bully and bamboozle SADC leaders to endorse the regime’s anti-sanction propaganda and the party thought it could muscle its way into the Commonwealth. The penny has not dropped but it will drop because the door was slammed shut in the dictator’s face!
Mnangagwa had hoped Zimbabwe will be readmitted into Commonwealth BEFORE 2023 elections he was told in no uncertain term it will be AFTER 2023 election on condition elections are free and fair! He IS rigging the elections but rigging political legitimacy is a bridge too far!
ReplyDeletehttps://www.zimeye.net/2023/05/09/mnangagwas-king-charles-iii-photo-opportunity-is-now-his-self-inflicted-coup-de-grace/
For the British, a country that had the prerogative to invite guests to the coronation of its King, that it invited President Mnangagwa to such an event was described as an icebreaker that bodes well for Zimbabwe's future vis a vis the historic, present and future aspects.
ReplyDeleteWriting on Twitter, President Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe and the UK have entered exciting times, both business wise and diplomatically.
"During my trip to London, I had the fantastic opportunity to sit down with the UK Minister for Africa, Rt Hon Andrew Mitchel. Understanding what steps the UK thinks we must take and developing the relationship between the UK and Zimbabwe is an exciting opportunity for all of us," he said.
President Mnangagwa has been steadfast in his quest to reposition Zimbabwe in the comity of nations, not as a junior partner to any country but an equal member of the global family — as espoused in his policy of "friend to all and enemy to none".
"At the international and continental level, the Second Republic is deepening economic diplomacy to leap frog our present socio-economic development, modernisation and industrialisation of our beloved motherland. Guided by our overarching national interests, we are embracing those who want to move forward with us in support of the realisation of our own national development priorities.
"Zimbabwe is a friend to all and an enemy to none. Events such as my attendance of the coronation of King Charles III, over the weekend, as well as the recent hosting of the Transform Africa Summit, coupled with the successful 63rd Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, are set to broaden our country's trade, investment and people to people exchanges," the President said at the burial of national hero Abraham Kabasa on Monday.
The regime is reading between the line on Mnangagwa’s invitation to King Charles III’s coronation and ignore what is actually there, in black and white.
Mnangagwa dispatched the late Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sibusiso Moyo, to formally apply for Zimbabwe to be readmitted into the Commonwealth before the dust of the 2017 military coup had settled. The regime was told the Commonwealth will send an election observer team to the 2018 election, if the elections were judge free, fair and credible then yes Zimbabwe will be readmitted.
Zanu PF rigged the 2018 elections and so the Commonwealth refused to readmit Zimbabwe.
The regime has been pushing to be readmit BEFORE the 2023 elections and Mnangagwa was told by the Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland, that the club will review the matter AFTER the elections if they are judged free, fair and credible.
Mnangagwa and his spin doctors can say whatever they want, they always do, but facts, truth and reality are not going to change to fit their desired propaganda narrative. Indeed, Zimbabwe is a failed state precisely because the country has the great misfortune of being ruled by buffoon who have made the same idiotic mistakes over and over again because they do not learn from the past, they have no respect for facts and reality.
MDC/CCC has said this for the last 23 years and nothing has changed because Zanu PF has retained the carte blanche powers to rig elections. Zanu PF is rigging these 2023 elections you lot know this and you also know you are giving SADC the excuse to grant Zanu PF legitimacy by participating. You are hell bent on participating regardless out of greed, you know Zanu PF is giving away a number of gravy train seats.
ReplyDeleteChamisa and company are ignoring the reality of Zanu PF rigging the elections because they are blinded by greed. CCC are the ones keeping Zanu PF in power by participating in flawed elections; “so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was (is) to withdraw,” as David Coltart admitted in his book reference the 2013 elections.
Many people have lost their lives in the fight for free, fair and credible elections, the right CCC are now bargaining away with Zanu PF for 30 pieces of silver! Zimbabwe has the great misfortune of having some of the most corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless political leaders on both sides of the political divide and it is no wonder the country is stuck!
@ Mavaza
ReplyDelete‘Al Jazeera To Pay Ambassador Uebert Angel Millions For Defamation Of Character Over Gold Mafia’
Ambassador Uebert Angel has disclosed that Al Jazeera will pay him millions in compensation for defamation.
Ambassador Uebert Angel, Zimbabwe’s Presidential Envoy and Ambassador at Large to Europe and the Americas declared that the Qatari international state-owned public media organisation will pay his millions for defaming his name in the documentary “Gold Mafia.”
He revealed this in a recent address to congregants. Ambassador Angel, who is also a Prophet and the leader of the Spirit Embassy – The Good News Church and Uebert Angel Ministries, told congregants that Al Jazeera is going to compensate him.
The trouble with Zanu PF leaders and their apologists is that they have no respect for the reality, truth and facts. They live in their own make-believe, cloud cuckoo land in which the laws of thermodynamics which rule supreme here on mother earth do not apply in cloud cuckoo land because Mnangagwa, before him Mugabe, said or wish it so.
Al Jazeera will pay Uebert Angel millions of dollars compensation because Mnangagwa wish it so! How dare Al Jazeera embarrassed the man appointed by Mnangagwa himself as ambassador-at-large as just a third grade conman? How dare Al Jazeera exposed Mnangagwa himself as buffoon not fit to look after goats much less to be head of state!
Al Jazeera is based in the real world and not cloud cuckoo land. People like Mavaza should stop bringing their cloud cuckoo land nonsense here!