Reacting to Wednesday`s swearing-in of opposition leader Morgan
Tsvangirai as Prime Minister in Zimbabwe`s newly-formed national unity
government, they said it would also be a good thing for Tanzania and
other countries, especially in the SADC region.
“When these things (the problems in Zimbabwe) happen to one of us all
of us suffer. And so when things get better we are all happy.
It is in our best interest to see a stable and peaceful Zimbabwe,“
Prof. Rwekaza Mukandala, vice-chancellor of the University of Dar es
Salaam, said.
He noted that the coalition would work only to the extent to which the different parties were committed to making it so.
Given the current situation in Zimbabwe and the level of suffering of
the people the parties have no alternative but to make the coalition
work. I think it can work, I think it will work and it must work, he
said.
In last year`s presidential election Tsvangirai won in the first round
but pulled out of the race ahead of the run-off because his supporters
were being victimized.
The 84-year-old Mugabe went through the run-off anyway and declared himself president of Zimbabwe for the twenty-eighth year.
The two parties have since been engaged in a power-sharing deal that was dogged by numerous stalemates.
John Chiligati, publicity and ideological secretary of the ruling CCM,
said he believed the principal parties in Zimbabwe were `genuine.`
“We believe that both parties – Mugabe and Tsvangirai – are genuine in
coming together to create a coalition that will put the interests of
the people of Zimbabwe first. If they genuinely have Zimbabwe at heart,
then we believe that it will work,“ he said.
He said Tanzania which, like Zimbabwe, is a member of SADC, welcomed the power-sharing deal between Tsvangirai and Mugabe.
By having a power-sharing government we are optimistic that the
situation will get better. We are now assured of peace, stability and
economic recovery in that country, he said.
Professor Mwesiga Baregu, a renowned political analyst from the
University of Dar es Salaam, said a power-sharing government was a
positive direction for Zimbabwe, considering how critical the situation
had become.
It is a good move and it promises to repair some of the divisions that
had happened in the country and among the people, and we hope that
Zimbabweans can work together to rebuild their country, he said.
In his view, the efforts by SADC leaders had to be acknowledged in
working towards enforcing this deal amidst skepticism from the West.
Baregu also argued that the success of the coalition government would
depend on how focused both parties are in terms of defining what needs
to be done in the immediate period.“
He noted that the country badly needed a new constitution and reforms had to be undertaken immediately.
He said Zimbabwe was also faced with a humanitarian crisis, with over
3000 people dying from cholera and the number feared to increase by the
day.
Baregu said the country was also grappling with obscene inflation rates
– at over one million per cent – and recently the country issued
trillion-dollar notes which were of little value.
With this financial hiccup the country would definitely need funds for
reconstruction but warned that this might not happen soon.
“It all depends on the support from the West – the United Kingdom, the European Union, United States of America and others.
However, they have been skeptical and cynical about the power-sharing
deal. We can only hope that they would change their position and come
in to provide the necessary assistance,“ Baregu noted.
Analysts say that the development community and donor countries may be
reluctant to inject aid into Zimbabwe unless they are convinced that
the power-sharing deal will work.
Baregu noted that while the United Nations had a key role to play in
further fostering peace and getting its members to get involved in
Zimbabwe, Tanzania too had a role to play to see that there was peace
and stability because it played a great role in seeing that Zimbabwe
signed the 1979 Lancaster Agreement which ended racial rule in the
country and paved the way for Zimbabwe`s independence with Mugabe as
president.
GUARDIAN
Post published in: News