Mugabe to Appoint New Ministers to Fill Vacuum by MDC Boycott

Mugabe the Dictator

According to government spokesman, Webster Shamu, the Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe may appoint acting ministers in place of officials from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s party who are boycotting cabinet meetings. The spokesman said that Mugabe is concerned that the MDC boycott was affecting the government’s work in preparing for a new farming season and its efforts to turn around the agriculture-based economy after years of recession. He also said that the dictator may have to consider appointing ministers in an acting capacity to key ministries for the sake of a successful agricultural season and general economic turnaround.

According to analysts, the appointment of acting ministers would further anger the MDC, although the party’s options are limited as to how it can react to such a move by the regime. Positions likely to be filled include Finance Minister Tendai Biti, Planning Minister Elton Mangoma and Energy Minister Elias Mudzuri, and all senior MDC figures who sit on a cabinet committee on agriculture.

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has sent a 15 man delegation to Harare to hold meetings with ZANU-PF and the MDC on Thursday to try to break the deadlock. A complete breakdown of the Unity government still looks unlikely because both parties have no viable alternative. Mugabe who has been suffering from a urology disorder and had to be flown to an Arab country for treatment recently, seems determined to hold on to power with a firm grip as his health continues to deteriorate. It is inevitable that power will change hands soon in Zimbabwe as the dictator runs out of political options.

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