A NEW UNITY government will not be allowed to reverse Zimbabwe's land-reform policy, in which nearly 4,000 white-owned farms were forcibly seized, President Robert Mugabe has told his party faithful.
Closing his Zanu-PF party's 10th annual conference on Saturday, the veteran leader said: "We will never allow regression in regard to our land policy . . . the land has already been given to the people, it will not be returned to whites."
Mr Mugabe also urged the 5,000 attending delegates to be ready for new elections, which would be held if the current powersharing talks with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which have stalled since a deal was signed on September 15th last, collapsed completely.
"We don't want to be shamed again like what happened in March. If elections are called we should be confident of victory. Provinces should start strengthening the party," he said, a day after telling party members he would never stand down as the country's president.
Zimbabwe's rival parties have been unable to agree on how key ministries should be divided in a new unity government, agreed to under a deal many hoped would be a turning point for a country on the verge of complete collapse.
The ensuing political vacuum left by the inability of the two parties to implement the deal has led to a paralysis in government and a virtual disintegration of essential services like health and sanitation.
In recent months, nearly 1,200 people have died from a deadly cholera outbreak and 20,000 people have been infected by the water-borne disease. Half the population also currently faces starvation due to the collapse of the economy and agricultural sector.
The 84-year-old's defiant statements at the weekend come as international calls for him to stand down over his increasingly ruinous rule have intensified. Internationally and regionally, fears are growing Zimbabwe maybe in danger of becoming a failed state, like Somalia.
Yesterday the top US envoy for Africa, Jendayi Frazer, said his government could no longer support a powersharing deal that left Mr Mugabe as the country's president, as they were now unconvinced he was capable of sharing power.