Over the years, the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) has hardly been able to justify its existence.
SADC has had many opportunities to do so and had chances to make themselves relevant in a generally troubled region.
But many times, SADC has looked feeble when confronted with situations in which it could have shown some true grit.
Zimbabwe continues to offer SADC an opportunity to redeem itself but still SADC has not taken up the challenge.
Robert Mugabe, one of the three principals in a coalition government in the troubled nation of Zimbabwe, is threatening to call for elections, having refused to implement some important aspects of the so-called Global Political Agreement, which gave birth to the coalition government.
Among SADC’s requirements before elections can be held in Zimbabwe is that of the writing and adoption of a new Constitution.
SADC should not let Mugabe call for elections before the constitution is in place.
There should not be any elections in Zimbabwe until a new Constitution is in place.
It is as simple as that; and the Movement for Democratic Change better acquaint itself with this reality instead of showing us their soft underbelly again.
No one wants elections more than the people of Zimbabwe because Zimbabweans have some cleaning up to do.
We want to rid ourselves of dead wood, of murderers and of thieves in both parliament and cabinet.
We have too many unelected people in government and parliament. Mugabe has his own bunch of specially elected people in parliament, cabinet and in government.
So does Prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai and the other little party, whose whole leadership lost in the elections but nominated themselves into cabinet and parliament at the expense of those of their party who had been voted for.
They must all go.
But above all else, Zimbabweans are itching to rid themselves of the bane of a coalition government.
These three political parties have dismally failed to work together for the common good of the nation as they spend time squabbling, insulting each other and, in the case of Mugabe’s party, sending thugs to beat up members of the opposition.
We want elections now, but not before a new Constitution, and the MDC better get this clear in its head because it seems willing to jump into the fray without the proper requirements having been met.
The absence of a Constitution has caused terrible hardships for the Zimbabwean people. We cannot be asked, once again, to enter a snake-filled dungeon without a few sticks of matches.
Why does the MDC want to slip on the same banana twice?
The South African Foreign minister told her Parliament that a committee is drafting a new constitution in Zimbabwe, after which a referendum and then elections should be held.
“Our government, therefore, expects that there would be no deviation from the provisions of the GPA,” she added.
Immediately after the statement came out, ZANU-PF hawks attacked her while the MDC said it will “treat 2012 as a watershed year” and vowed to prepare for elections.
The MDC must employ its energies in the writing and adoption of a new Constitution before considering elections. The necessary reforms must be put in place first.
As its primary crusade, the MDC should be fighting for conducive conditions under which elections will be held.
As for ZANU-PF, what do you expect?
They are benefitting from the current panel-beaten constitution, which they use to deny us our freedoms.
We cannot continue abusing ourselves like this yet nothing protects people better than the Constitution.
Look at how Attorney General Johannes Tomana is behaving; he literally harbours ZANU-PF lawbreakers by not prosecuting them.
The Constitution won’t like that.
ZANU-PF is riled by suggestions that proper elections be held only after a new constitution has been installed.
Jonathan Moyo told the South African Foreign Minister to “shut up”. What an eloquent professor he is. I can see that it is excruciatingly painful for him to be as ordinary as he has become.
Several issues have to be addressed before elections; we don’t want a repeat of 2008.
The voters’ roll is a shambles and needs microscopic scrutiny.?The media, which is one of the pillars in a democracy, is not free.
Draconian laws are still in place denying people their freedoms; the MDC itself continues to suffer curtailments in addressing meetings and rallies.
And if Mugabe loses again, what will stop him from creating the same stalemate as we have now?
“We are ready for elections…” said MDC spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora the other day. This is pathetic. Who is “we”? How does the MDC find enthusiasm in a graveyard?
Zimbabwe is not ready for meaningful elections at the moment. Zimbabweans want a clean government run by one party and to hell with coalition governments.?We cannot be coaxed into trusting Mugabe who has fooled Tsvangirai many times before.
Decisions on running the country cannot continue to be made by a senile man while sitting alone in his bathroom.
“The belief that he will live forever is the one that is affecting Mugabe,” said Finance Minister and MDC Secretary General on Wednesday. “People surrounding him say to him you will beat Morgan Tsvangirai tomorrow, let’s go for an election. This has made him enter what we call a reality distortion field.”
The MDC must resist elections at this point but, instead, make the proper conclusion of writing and adoption of a new constitution its primary crusade, instead of telling us they are preparing for elections.
The MDC must hold back until all conditions to hold proper elections are established.
Even South African President Jacob Zuma has warmed Tsvangirai about participating in elections before all the set conditions are met, saying if the MDC goes ahead they will not be able to approach anyone in SADC for help should things go as wrong as they did in 2008.
What ideology do ZANU-PF and the MDC have that people should die for, anyway??What vision for Zimbabwe do Mugabe and Tsvangirai have that is worth dying for??People voted for Tsvangirai; Mugabe said no.?Tsvangirai wanted to move into the Prime Minister’s residence; Mugabe said no.?Tsvangirai wanted an updated voters’ roll; he didn’t get that.?He wanted a new constitution; we are still waiting.?He wanted to appoint MDC governors; what happened??Tsvangirai wanted to appoint MDC ambassadors, what happened??He wanted Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono and Attorney General Johannes Tomana fired; they were not.?He wanted MDC’s Roy Bennett sworn in as minister; Mugabe said no.
Tsvangirai wanted to prosecute those who murdered 200 MDC supporters in 2008; Mugabe says no.
Tsvangirai wanted the notorious Joseph Mwale to be arrested for allegedly petrol bombing to death two of Tsvangirai’s aides; Mugabe said no but, instead, put Mwale into the security detail that accompanied Tsvangirai on his first visit to the infamous Chiadzwa diamonds fields.?Now Mugabe says he wants elections again; and the MDC is saying they are preparing for such.?Did the MDC ever learn anything from ZANU-PF?
Free and fair elections are born out of a free and fair campaign. We must take lessons from what happened before to avoid prolonging the misery of our citizens.
Elections themselves are not the end; what happens before, during and after those elections is what should be of concern to us.
