“We shall soon be setting up a government. MDC does not want to come in apparently. This time they have been promised by British that sanctions would be more devastating, then in six months time government will collapse,” Mr Mugabe said.
Mr Mugabe said he would form a cabinet of hard workers, also criticising his past cabinet saying it was the worst he has ever had in his 28 years of ruling Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwean Chronicle quoted Mr Mugabe saying: “I need managers. I want workers, people who take people to work. I do not want people with own businesses. I want one business, the people’s business,” while addressing parliamentarians in Zimbabwe. He also emphasised that Cabinet Ministers who own businesses should employ other people to manage their businesses while they attend to the business of the people.
Meanwhile Zimbabwe’s new parliamentary speaker, Lovemore Moyo, announced that talks, which began a month ago, were still taking place.
MDC has expressed confidence in the on going power sharing talks. “We remain committed to a dialogue process that is going to produce an acceptable outcome for all the players, an inclusive government. We are against this unilateralism and arrogance,” MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said.
Mr Mugabe officially opened the country’s parliament on Tuesday after talks to form a power-sharing government with the two factions of the opposition MDC stalled. Delays in reaching a solution have also been said to be threatening Zimbabwe’s chance of economic recovery.
Zimbabwe has world’s highest annual inflation rate of over 11 million percent and severe food, fuel and foreign currency shortages which have driven millions of Zimbabweans flee to neighbouring countries.
The main MDC led by Mr Tsvangirai had earlier said it would boycott the opening session arguing that it was in breach of talks mediated by South Africa’s president Thabo Mbeki.
The opposition handed a petition to the clerk of parliament, denouncing the opening of parliament as meaningless, saying it violated a deal signed in July ahead of the power-sharing talks, which have been stalled for two weeks.
Meanwhile, MDC Secretary-General, Tendai Biti, treason trial was today postponed to 17 November at Harare’s Magistrates’ Court. Mr Biti was arrested at the Harare International Airport on 5 June upon returning to the country from South Africa.
Afrol News, 27 August.