BuaNews (Tshwane)
28 October 2009
Harare — The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) says it is pinning its hopes on a ministerial team from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to help resolve the political situation there.
The party, led by Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, has partially disengaged from the government of national unity.
The ministerial team is expected to arrive in the country this week.
MDC Spokesman Nelson Chamisa told journalists that the party expected the SADC to convene a summit should the ministerial team fail to break the impasse.
The visit by the SADC ministerial team comes after the three principals to the Global Political Agreement (GPA) met on Monday but failed to agree on outstanding issues.
President Robert Mugabe, who leads the Zanu PF party, Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara, who heads an MDC splinter faction, met on Monday but failed to break the impasse that the partial disengagement of the MDC created.
"The principals met for nearly three hours and discussed a number of issues with a focus on outstanding issues. It was not a regular meeting," said Chamisa.
He said the major issues discussed included the appointment of provincial governors, ambassadors and the appointments of Central Bank Governor Gideon Gono and the Attorney General, Johannes Tomana.
Other issues related to the rule of law and alleged persecution of MDC legislators.
The MDC two weeks ago announced that it was partially pulling out of government to press Zanu PF to the negotiating table to discuss outstanding issues.
It said the indictment of MDC treasurer Roy Bennett on terror-related charges had been the last straw to pent-up frustration over sluggish implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA), which the parties signed in September last year that paved the way for the formation of the inclusive government.
Chamisa said regular meetings of the principals, which were usually conducted on Mondays, to follow up on implementation of the GPA had been suspended following the MDC's disengagement from government.
The MDC spokesperson said only a quarter of targets set out in the GPA had to date been implemented. Issues such as the new Constitution, four independent commissions among others, were still to be concluded.
The partial pull-out of the MDC has caused consternation in the country as people fear a return to the economic meltdown experienced over the past decade when the political situation had deteriorated.
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Dilip11860;
How can MDC pin hope on people they called "cowards"? Are SADC leaders no longer cowards and a worst of time? When Tsvangison thought he could just work with his masters and be imposed on us through the back door by his masters, he ignored SADC instructions and resolutions.
Why should MDC now pin hopes on the same people who have no money and are incompetent leaders? He should just go to Europe and meet the CIA and MI6 who created his party and have been sponsoring him and his party for the past 10 years.
Dont listen to Tacky. He thinks that the CIA invented homosexuality.
takunya, it is you who have been saying SADC are thee and all in Africa and only they can solve your problems. Isn't that right? That has put the hope of the people up but what a let down it has been. It would have been far better to pin hope on a donkey's tail than SADC.
Kjrs120;
Tell that to the sellouts in MDC and you won't know what hit you.
Takunya your response has no bearing to my post. Tell what to MDC?
Kjrs120;
My response has a lot of relevance to what you said unless you don't know what you were talking about. I will remind you; you said "It would have been far better to pin hope on a donkey's tail than SADC".
I was therefore saying that if you say this in front of the sellouts in MDC; Biti, Tsvangi, Mukono and others you will definitely not see what hit you because they are pinning their hopes on SADC and yet you say SADC is useless.
That was true last year when Tsvangirai was still "swinging" with McGee not now when the disgraced former chief CIA agent to Zimbabwe has been fired for incompetence.
Takunya thanks for clearing that up. Well, I do know what I am talking about, but it's only just the fact that you say stuff the arse about way. So when you say that McGee was a chief CIA and that he was fired for incompetency, was it because he failed to invent homosexuality like all the others as per your belief?
The SADC is more incompetent than the UN. I predict that they will recommend more talk backed up with no force of action. Mugabe came to power through a barrel of a gun and that's the only way he is going to leave.