The meeting of the heads of state of Angola, Swaziland and Mozambique, who form the security committee of the Southern African Development Community, is aimed at trying to help the country’ political rivals break a deadlock in negotiations over forming a cabinet.
Elphas Mukonoweshuro, the party’s secretary for Foreign Affairs, told Newsreel that Mugabe deliberately created obstacles for Tsvangirai not to attend the Troika meeting. The MDC MP for Gutu South said Tsvangirai battled all week to obtain a valid passport, but failed after the authorities made it clear they were not prepared to issue him a new one. His old passport expired earlier this year and all attempts to renew it have been denied.
Tsvangirai is not a criminal to be denied a passport. He doesn’t even need to beg for a passport. He is a law abiding citizen of this country and its his basic right to acquire a passport without any impediments,’
Mukonoweshuro said. The MDC says all leaders in the SADC region are now aware of Tsvangirai’s predicament.
The party’s chief negotiator Tendai Biti, told the media in Johannesburg on Monday that Tsvangirai’s difficulty in obtaining the documents made it clear that Mugabe was not ready to share power.
Mugabe and Tsvangirai were due to meet face-to-face again in Mbabane, to try and resolve the four-week impasse over the sharing of cabinet portfolios.
The negotiations in Harare, mediated by the former president of South Africa Thabo Mbeki last week, ended in deadlock after Mugabe grabbed all the key ministries for his ZANU PF party.
Mbeki last month brokered the agreement that created a government of national unity. This accord is now waiting to be incorporated into the constitution as amendment number 19, but its implementation awaits the approval and appointment of a cabinet. But the two parties are still worlds apart in the allocation of all ministries. The MDC have called on the United Nations and African Union to step in to mediate after both parties declared a deadlock.
 SWRadio Africa
Post published in: News