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Crisis talks between Zimbabwe's government leaders were postponed after a brief meeting on Monday, amid reports of a tense atmosphere brewing between the country's three main principals.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara have been locked in discussion with Robert Mugabe over key outstanding issues, such as the appointment of governors, permanent secretaries and the recent attempts to weaken the power of Nelson Chamisa's Information Communication Technology Ministry. Last week's round of talks all proved inconclusive, with the meeting being rescheduled to Monday.
The Prime Minister's spokesperson James Maridadi explained on Monday that the meeting to discuss the outstanding issues convened as planned, but was adjourned later in the day, until Tuesday. But a source close to the talks has told SW Radio Africa that Monday's meeting was 'tense', a likely cause of the yet unexplained postponement.
The tensions are in direct contrast to public statements made by the Prime Minister over the weekend, where he said there was no going back on the unity government. He was addressing supporters at a rally in Chinhoyi, where he called for reconciliation among the country's political opponents. Tsvangirai expressed satisfaction with the progress of the inclusive government so far, as well as his dealings with Mugabe, saying: "There is nothing Mugabe does without me approving. There is nothing I do without Mugabe approving."
His statements came a day after his MDC party on Friday said the failure by the government's leaders to resolve the outstanding issues is threatening the viability of the unity government. In a sign of growing frustration at the talks, the MDC said the delays to resolve the outstanding issues and several other problems had left the country with a "handicapped government" that was not fully functional.
Tsvangirai's 'satisfaction' with the government will therefore likely need explaining, as will the apparent relationship of approval that Tsvangirai has said he maintains with Mugabe.
If the Prime Minister's approval is sought over various violations of the Global Political Agreement, this would have serious negative implications, as so far they have all been attributed to Mugabe.
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All MDC have to do is STOP paying ZANU card holders the US100 a month civil service allowance. Boboons party is bankrupt and doesn't have a hope of paying the so called police force so why does the MDC pay the cops to carry out ZANU orders ? Duh
Alex Bell again is just up to no good! As usual what he writes is rumors and inuedos over and over again. I bet you this is just another false article and based on twisted rumours. Somebody is busy, within the white anglo minority community feeding SW Radio lies and distortortion. Not every article written about Zimbabwe from the UK is of value. So many exaggerated stories about Zimbabwe come from the UK and their white anglo brethrenies in Zimbabwe. Be careful about a radio station 10,000 miles away crying wolf in your country. You must first verify the stories. Radio Rwanda called for the killing of 800,000 Tutsie, by the Hutu, after telling a pack of lies on their radio Station. I do not trust SW Radio. There is no story about Zimbabwe that will be accurate from SW Radio, it is always rumors.
My dear Phiri,
I can understand your feelings of suspicion. There is also the other side of the story - that criminal Mugabe does everything to maintain censorship of such news that may embarrass him and his cronies. One must be a lunatic to think that censorship will work to one's advantage at this age of information revolution that the internet has brought about.
I believe, like you, that Mugabe must take the back seat for the GNU to be able to deliver. But I also believe that Mugabe and his cronies are grabbing every opportunity to undermine the work of the MDC ministers.
Rumours at times have their place in a society where relevant information does not reach out to the people. Rumours also are planted in a timely manner to nip in the budd any evil developments. God knows how evil devil Mugabe could be!
Phiri if you don't have any convidence in SW radioreports could you tell me which of the "outstanding issues" have been solved in your opinion? All newsreports, apart from the Herald, come with the same answer and conclusion: NONE. For me it's quite logical this gives tensions between MDC and criminal Mugabe, the illegitimate president. For the future of Zimbabwe it's good there are Zimbabweans like the SW radiostaff. They have a sharp mind and know the difference between meaning and cause, between facts and rumours and do not generalize people because of the colour of their skin.
SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH is at it again; speculation gone wild in INVADER BRITAIN.
There is one good thing to say about INVADER BRITAIN: following the philosophy of Edmund Burke, one could say that most Brits are copy cats of American pragmaticism, and Burke loved the revolutionary BRITISH citizens who rose up against INVADER BRITAIN, violently overthrew the British regime, proudly declared themselves "Americans," and sent the Brits and their fifth columinists packing with their tails between their legs or dispatched to eternity.
Accordingly, SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH negates the dominant British attitude, namely the abiding determination to act, to the degree humanly possible, on corroborated facts alone; to argue not from rigid principles, but from Burke's favorite rhetorical topos: argument from circumstances which, obviously, presupposes a careful discrimination of corroborated facts from first, lies; second, rumors; and third and most significantly, speculation.
But these points are philosophical, and they may be dismissed as the talking points of eggheads. However, it is not that easy to dismiss the obvious journalistic professionalism of SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH.
We have attempted to demonstrate in our earlier posts the depth of the SPECULATIVE rhodie parrot's naive, loose, and wrongheaded interpretation and application of the canons of journalism. Even this defect could be ignored in the spirit of professional charity.
However, EVERY ZIMBABWEAN has a duty to resist any and all unauthorized foreign interferences in the socio-political life of Zimbabwe. The preceding sentence is the expression of the principle of self-determination. One may argue about the implementation of the principle, but the principle itself is unarguable, self-evident, and true.
The Prime Minister is reported by SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH to have stated that he does nothing without the assent of Cde. Mugabe and that Cde. Mugabe does nothing---politically and socially---without the Prime Minister's assent.
To efface this cardinal presupposition of the GNU, SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH resorts to speculation. The rhodie yellow rag speculates that the postponement of a meeting proves that there is "tension" among the leaders of the GNU. That the argument is circular should be obvious to level headed commentators.
Tension is a fact of human existence; its existence does not necessarily signal malfunction, as the neuro-scientists correct theorize, and as practical people know. Tension or stress is sometimes a determinant of creative problem solving, creative thinking.
SPECULATIVE SOUTH WEST RUBBISH, the worst yellow rag in the world of yellow rags!
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