President Jakaya Kikwete looks ready to flex his political muscle following a catalogue of failures presided over by South African President Thabo Mbeki to get the warring parties to agree to a peace deal which will end the country’s decade long economic collapse.
Foreign Minister Bernard Membe told journalists in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania that they want to see a 50/50 power sharing deal agreed for Zimbabwe immediately to stem a growing economic crisis.
“There is a problem and we still hope the mediation will continue, and we still hope wisdom will prevail. We would prefer a solution be arrived at immediately because of the escalating economic crisis. We still pray that a solution will be found towards a 50 percent power sharing solution,” Membe said.
Membe’ statement comes a day after MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa told Newsreel they would soon approach the AU for advice on the way forward.
Both the MDC and ZANU PF said talks that resumed on Friday in South Africa did not reach agreement. The negotiators from all parties separately met Mbeki, who is mediating the discussions.
Political analyst Bekithemba Mhlanga said it’s clear the talks have stalled over how to share executive power between Mugabe and Tsvangirai, “so any new input into the talks should define the roles of the two men.”
He added, “I think we have reached a point where everyone agrees a deal between the two sides should reflect the will of the people as demonstrated by events on the 29th March.”
Tsvangirai beat Mugabe in the March election but fell short of enough votes to avoid a run-off vote, which was ‘won’ by Mugabe unopposed after Tsvangirai pulled out citing violence and intimidation against his supporters.
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