14 November 2009
THE Southern African Development Community (Sadc) has observed that the management of the Ministry of Home Affairs does not reflect the spirit of the inclusive government. The candid assessment will pile pressure on MDC-T co-Minister of Home Affairs Giles Mutsekwa on the back of calls by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) for him to resign.
It will also bolster MDC-T negotiators during talks that start this week as the party is charging that Zanu PF is unwilling to see the full implementation of their power-sharing agreement.
Foreign ministers from Swaziland, Zambia and Mozambique who were in the country to assess the efficacy of the power-sharing deal last month said although Mutsekwa and his colleague Kembo Mohadi (Zanu PF) were working well, the management of the ministry was not up to expectations.
"Management of the ministry does not reflect the spirit of the inclusive government because the police matters are controlled by the Police Service Commission," the ministers said in their recommendations to the Sadc troika on peace defence, and security ahead of its meeting in Mozambique on November 5.
"The arrest and jailing of the MDC-T supporters undermines the inclusive government."
The foreign ministers observed that although the coalition had managed to solve some of Zimbabwe's multitude of problems, it faced a number of challenges.
The Sadc ministers also felt that the Joint Monitoring Committee, which is made up of representatives from Zanu PF and the two MDC factions had not been able to solve "genuine grievances".
The failure was attributed to the "operational weakness of the structure because it does have legal recognition".
"Its decisions were not legally binding therefore it has been reduced to a talk shop with no concrete decisions and a non-constitutional body could not monitor constitutionally created entities of the state," the ministers noted.
"Its meetings are not regular and depend on who is chairing."
Analysts say had JOMIC been effective, there would have been no need for the Maputo summit.
The ministers' recommendation on the management of the Ministry of Home Affairs gives ammunition to critics of the co-sharing arrangement that has resulted in two ministers being in charge of one ministry.
Among these critics are the leaders of the ZCTU who were arrested in Victoria Falls for allegedly violating the notorious Public Order and Security Act (POSA).
They were released four days later after a magistrate said they had no case to answer.
"The ZCTU expresses its disappointment in the actions of the inclusive government, particularly those of the co-ministers of Home Affairs Giles Mutsekwa and Kembo Mohadi," said ZCTU secretary general Wellington Chibhebhe.
"As stated in our previous statements, the two gentlemen have failed this nation. The best present they can offer Zimbabweans is to resign."
Mutsekwa and Mohadi were not available for comment yesterday.
Last month, ZCTU also called on the two ministers to resign after three workers were shot at the Shabani Mine during a peaceful protest.
Mutsekwa says he is working hard to reform the police force, a vital tool of repression by the previous Zanu PF government.
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