CHITUNGWIZA – Zimbabwean prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai has said he will stay in government and challenge president Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF to implement last year’s political deal in full.
Mr Tsvangirai said last week his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was suspending last month’s cabinet boycott, which it imposed in response to what it said was Mr Mugabe’s refusal to abide by the provisions of the agreement.
Yesterday, Mr Tsvangirai told party supporters at a rally in Chitungwiza outside Harare that the boycott was a wake-up call for Mr Mugabe not to regard his party as a junior partner in the fragile nine-month-old coalition.
“We will not leave, our people told us that we should fight from inside. Why should we leave when we are the majority party?” Mr Tsvangirai said.
A meeting of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Mozambique last week gave Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai 15 days to resolve the issues threatening to derail the unity government, after which South Africa, which has been facilitating a rapprochement, would step in.
Mr Tsvangirai said South African president Jacob Zuma would visit Zimbabwe after two weeks, a sign that Thabo Mbeki, the former South African president who helped seal the unity government deal, might no longer be involved.
The MDC had accused Mr Mbeki of siding with Mr Mugabe and Zanu-PF during last year’s negotiations. Mr Mbeki denied the allegation.
“Zanu-PF has this window of opportunity to demonstrate goodwill and that they are committed to the unity government and commit themselves to the SADC resolutions,” said Mr Tsvangirai.
Mr Tsvangirai did not say what his party would do if Mr Mugabe failed to meet its demands but analysts say the two rivals have little choice but to work together to stop the improving economy from plunging back into crisis.
The MDC has accused Mr Mugabe of being a “dishonest and unreliable partner” for refusing to implement powersharing fully, particularly regarding senior appointments. The former opposition party also says Zanu-PF is persecuting MDC officials and stifling media and constitutional reforms vital for holding free and fair elections in the next two years.
Mr Mugabe says he has met his side of the deal and the MDC should campaign for the lifting of western sanctions against Zanu-PF.
“If Zanu-PF thought this [boycott] was a joke, you have learnt one lesson . . . that you must regard the MDC as an equal partner and not a junior partner,” Mr Tsvangirai said. – (Reuters)