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From: as on 4 Aug 2010 18:02
Mugabe to give back MDC ministers� portfolios

http://www.zimonline.co.za/

by Own Correspondent Friday 19 March 2010

HARARE � President Robert Mugabe has agreed during his two-day meetings
with
South African President Jacob Zuma to give back ministers from Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai�s MDC party functions and responsibilities
he had
unilaterally stripped them of, a source close to the power-sharing
talks
told ZimOnline Thursday.

The source, who spoke on condition that he remained anonymous, said the
amendments gazetted two weeks ago, which saw several MDC ministers
being
stripped of their powers will now be shelved.

�The amendments which were gazetted will now be shelved,� said the
source.
�There is also an agreement pertaining to the issue of (central bank
governor Gideon) Gono, (Attorney General Johannes) Tomana and
(Tsvangirai
top aide Roy) Bennett and a decision will be announced,� said the
source
declining to disclose further details.

Gono and Tomana are at the centre of a dispute between Mugabe and
Tsvangirai
with the Prime Minister insisting that they must be fired because the
President appointed them without consulting him.

But Mugabe has vowed never to fire the two men who are among his
staunchest
allies. Mugabe has refused to appoint MDC treasurer Bennett as deputy
agriculture minister insisting that he must first be cleared of treason
charges.

The source added: �The issue of the appointment of the provincial
governors
was also raised and it was agreed that their appointment should be
finalised. �The main issue is that if the agreement is not adhered to,
then
the issue will be referred to the SADC troika. We hope now the focus
will
now be on the 25 and 26 to make sure there is implementation.�

Both MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa and ZANU PF's Rugare Gumbo were not
immediately available for a comment on the matter.

The South African leader who yesterday wound up his visit to assess the
year-old power-sharing government of Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Deputy
Premier
Arthur Mutambara told reporters that he was �encouraged� by the
�spirit� of
cooperation shown by Zimbabwe�s political leadership in their efforts
to
fully implement their September 2008 power sharing agreement.

�I am very encouraged by the spirit of cooperation displayed by the
leaders
and all their parties,� Zuma said after meeting in Harare former long
time
rivals Mugabe and Tsvangirai.

�I have had fruitful discussions with all the signatories to the global
political agreement (GPA), their negotiating teams, leading Zimbabwean
personalities and other key stakeholders,� Zuma, the Southern African
Development Community (SADC)�s mediator in Zimbabwe.

The South African President met all the three Zimbabwean principals
separately on Wednesday before meeting them together yesterday. Zuma
also
met Tomana, Gono and Bennett on Wednesday night.

�The parties have agreed to a package of measures to be implemented
concurrently as per the decision of the SADC troika in Maputo,� said
Zuma
without disclosing any details. �I believe that the implementation of
this
package will take the process forward substantially.�

Zimbabwe�s unity government has stabilised Zimbabwe�s economy to
improve the
lives of ordinary citizens. But a dispute between Tsvangirai and Mugabe
over
how to share executive power, senior appointments and security sector
reforms is holding back the administration and threatening to render it
ineffective.

The unity government�s failure to win financial support from Western
powers
and multilateral institutions has also crippled its efforts to rebuild
an
economy shattered by a decade of political strife and acute recession.
�

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