UN secretary general urges Mugabe to speed up unity deal

By Tichaona Sibanda
12 December 2008

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on Friday urged Robert Mugabe to agree to a rapid deal for a new inclusive government with the MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
Speaking to journalists in Geneva, the Secretary General said by agreeing to form a unity government Mugabe would leave behind a positive legacy.

Ban recalled having personally pressed Mugabe two weeks ago in Doha in ‘very tense’ private talks to share power equally with Tsvangirai and MDC faction leader Arthur Mutambara.
“I have urged him (Mugabe) as hard as I could to honour his commitment as a political leader and as President of Zimbabwe to leave his legacy in a positive way. As we are coming to the close of this year, he should really look to the future of his country and his own people who have been suffering too much and too long from this political turmoil now coupled with very serious humanitarian tragedies. I am really appealing and urging him again,” Ban said.

MDC MP for Mbare Piniel Denga said the political situation prevailing in the country is that of confusion. He said statements made by Mugabe in the last week that he would call for early elections if the unity government fails, show he lacked a clear policy on the way forward.

“One day he threatens to call for elections and the next day he’s urging the MDC to join a unity government. This lack of clear policy has left many people confused,” Denga said.

South African facilitators working under SADC mediator Thabo Mbeki arrived in the country on Monday to push the parties to agree on the immediate gazetting of the Constitutional Amendment No 19 they agreed on in Pretoria three weeks ago.

The Bill gives legal effect to the political power-sharing pact and provides for the appointment of Tsvangirai as Prime Minister, and Mutambara Deputy Prime Minister in a government of national unity.

However the MDC-Tsvangirai, which holds the most seats in Parliament
and could very easily block passage of Amendment 19, has threatened not to vote for the Bill if outstanding issues were not resolved.

Among the sticking issues are the allocations of ministerial
portfolios, the appointment of provincial governors and the constitution and composition of the National Security Council.