Johannesburg — AS ZIMBABWE's rival political parties drift further apart on the implementation of their power-sharing pact, a new row has erupted over the unilateral drafting of a proposal to amend the constitution by President Robert Mugabe's negotiation team.
It emerged yesterday that Mugabe's Zanu (PF) negotiation team had drawn up a proposal to amend the constitution to facilitate the implementation of the agreement and had sent it to Southern African Development Community-mandated talks facilitator Thabo Mbeki.
While Zanu (PF) said all parties to the negotiations had been consulted on the draft, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), denied yesterday it had knowledge of the draft.
MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said yesterday the party was not involved in the drafting process. He said the MDC would use its majority to block the draft bill in parliament.
Chamisa said his party had its own proposal.
"We don't have the draft amendment proposal which Zanu (PF) says it has already given to Mbeki. The strange and outrageous thing about this is that we are only hearing these things through the media," Chamisa said.
"We were not consulted and therefore the draft is just a unilateral Zanu (PF) project. Zanu (PF) is insincere and events are proving this. How can we trust a party which fraudulently doctored the agreement in a clear case of forgery to draft such a critical bill? We reject the Zanu (PF) draft."
Mbeki is expected to assess whether it conforms with the requirements of the September power-sharing accord.
Mugabe's Minister of Information Sikhanyiso Ndlovu confirmed the document had been sent to Mbeki.
"Draft constitutional amendment bill number 19 has been completed and sent to the mediator in SA after scrutiny by the parties concerned," Ndlovu said.
The amendment would result in the introduction of the posts of prime minister and two deputy prime ministers to be occupied by opposition leaders and an enlarged 31-member cabinet.
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Useless SADC take note!!!!!!
Wake up mbeki.zanu(pf) is playing the pan-africanism card on you.Facilitator turns blind eye on altered agreement document.Facilitator receives "Draft constitutional amendment bill number 19" from zanu without the consultation of the MDC.Come to think of it,its not just mbeki who is under the pan-africanism spell.Just look at SADC
When Rhodesia was controlled and managed by the whites everything functioned well.When Mugabe and his band of Raskols took over the horsemen of the apocolypse immediately cane to Rhodesia to visit for a spell.The lesson here is one of harmony they should learned to follow the lead and in coorporate the white Rhodesians into their countrys make up and management.Ihave a good name for Mugabe we shall call him Robert BULL IN A CHINA SHOP Mugabe because he has permanantly recked that country. Perry Fisher,MD
Rhodesia is super!
And, racism is cool!
Besides, fella there ain't no such phenomenon called "Rhodesia." As for the dude from Maryland, USA, I am reasonably certain you did not vote for Barack Hussein Obama, or did you?
Cheers.
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