Zanu-PF ministers walk out of ministerial retreat

Sources in Cabinet told The Zimbabwean that a small clique of Zanu (PF) ministers led by Media, Information and Publicity minister Webster Shamu and Justice and Legal Affairs minister Patrick Chinamasa launched into a furious tirade and challenged Mutambara to substantiate his allegations. After a heated argument that spilled into the controversial issue of sanctions, a small clique of hardline Zanu (PF) ministers started trooping out of the venue of the meeting at Troutbeck Inn in the picturesque Nyanga where the ministers were meeting for the retreat.

Earlier, Tsvangirai had chaired the closed door meeting on a SWOT analysis of the performance of the government of national unity over the first 100-day targets.
President Mugabe, 85, was conspicously absent from the ministerial retreat ostensibly because he is on a one-week holiday. But his spokesman George Charamba was in the meeting, The Zimbabwean has heard.

Zanu (PF) ministers Sylvester Nguni, Ignatius Chombo, Walter Mzembi, Sthembiso Nyoni among others were said to have remained in their seats as they defied their Zanu (PF) colleagues’ walk-out. Permanent secretaries also refused to walk-out with their Zanu (PF) ministers. The Zimbabwean heard that the Zanu (PF) ministers who walked out put in on record that the protest was not against the Prime Minister, and officially apologised to him for the walk-out.

While efforts to obtain comment from Chinamasa were futile last night amid reports he was driving back to the capital, news agency Reuters quotes the minister saying: “The meetings were going on very well until this morning when Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara made some very provocative statements that the parliamentary and presidential elections of last year were all fraudulent, null and void.

“We, members from the Zanu (PF) side, walked out in protest at the reckless and irresponsible utterances by Professor Mutambara because they are intended at undermining the legitimacy of a party in the inclusive government,” he said.
The Zimbabwean heard that Mutambara was “over the top” when he addressed the meeting, and said Zanu (PF) had no right to be in power and had killed hundreds of people, according to our source.

Mutambara is said to have categorically stated that Zanu (PF) should never ever again repeat its murderous campaign that left 200 killed in the election-related conflict last year. The bombastic Deputy Prime Minister was said to have been challenged about his own leadership in his party where his colleagues claim to have ousted him, after which an explosive argument erupted leading to the Zanu (PF) ministers walking out in protest.

Ministers in the power-sharing government started meeting on Saturday in the luxury hotel in the resort of Nyanga. The exercise is intended to review the economic blueprint, STERP. The fracas is said to have angered the hardline Zanu (PF) officials to an extent that they were refusing to talk to their colleagues.

James Maridadi, spokesman for the Prime Minister on Saturday told The Zimbabwean that Tsvangirai was to officiate at the 2nd Ministerial Retreat at Troutbeck Inn.
“The retreat objectives were a review of the 100-day plan, identifying constraints encountered, a look at STERP etc,” Maridadi said.

The walk-out revealed the mounting friction in the six-month old coalition government.
Chinamasa however said the unity government was not in any danger of collapse.
“This is a very specific reaction to a specific problem,” he told Reuters. The five-star hotel which was hosting the retreat is near one of Zimbabwe’s tallest mountain and is situated in a rugged terrain with superb weather and waterfalls.

Dinner costs US$20 a plate in a country where half the population needs food aid.
Many are beginning to question the cost of the ministerial retreats and conferences that continue to be convened with little tangible spin-offs that are helping long-suffering Zimbabweans.

The Prime Minister’s top aide Gorden Moyo said the ministers had to go to Nyanga for the 100-day plan review because there were too many distractions in Harare.
The lavish retreat comes as doctors have entered the third week of a crippling strike that has affected all referral hospitals in Zimbabwe.