From: as on
Principals to meet

http://www.theindependent.co.zw

Saturday, 22 May 2010 13:21

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy
Prime Minister Professor Arthur Mutambara are expected to meet next
Friday for the first time in more than six weeks since negotiators
concluded talks. Tsvangirai told the Zimbabwe Independent yesterday
that the three political principals would be meeting on May 28 to
deliberate on the negotiators' report before the South Africans can
resume their mediation process. "We are meeting on Friday, the 28th
of May," said Tsvangirai without elaborating. The three principals
have been criticised for delaying the implementation of issues agreed
upon. Negotiators and President Jacob Zuma's facilitators are not
happy with the pace at which the principals are moving. The
negotiators have been talking since November 5 last year and when
they ended negotiations on April 3 they expected the principals to
expeditiously implement the latest issues agreed upon. Negotiators in
the talks include Patrick Chinamasa and Nicholas Goche for Zanu PF,
Tendai Biti and Elton Mangoma for the MDC-T, and Welshman Ncube and
Priscillah Misihairabwi-Mushonga for the MDC-M, while the South
African facilitators include Charles Nqakula, Mac Maharaj and Lindiwe
Zulu. One negotiator said two weeks ago that the process would
significantly move forward if the principals acted fast on
implementation, leaving a few issues to be dealt with. The
negotiators have agreed on a number of issues and they have written a
document on the implementation matrix, which was submitted as part of
the report given to the principals early last month. The negotiators
have agreed on the formula to share governors and what only remains
is who gets five appointees or four plus a ministerial position
between Zanu PF and MDC-T. The principals need to decide on that and
agree on when to swear them in. They have also agreed on the issue of
sanctions and the principals must agree on a work plan to remove the
sanctions. The negotiators have agreed on media issues, including
public-media reforms, hate speech and bias in the media, external
radio stations and land issues, including the land audit and tenure
systems. There is also an agreement on cabinet and council of
ministers, national economic council, amendments to the Electoral
Act, the role of NGOs, freedom of assembly and association, and
external interference. The other issues that they need to deal with
are national heroes, review and re-allocation of ministerial
mandates, the chairing of cabinet and the position of the permanent
secretary of Media, Information and Publicity doubling up as the
presidential spokesperson.

Faith Zaba