An irate Tsvangirai was due to confront President Robert Mugabe over the partisan conduct of the police yesterday but the meeting failed to take place because Tsvangirai was launching a health fund in Marondera.

The fresh standoff between the long-term rivals turned uneasy coalition partners comes after police banned three MDC rallies in Matabeleland region and barred Tsvangirai from addressing a meeting in Victoria Falls over the weekend.

Tsvangirai’s spokesman Luke Tamborinyoka said the meeting between Mugabe and Tsvangirai has been postponed but will happen this week.

“The meeting did not take place because the Prime Minister was launching the Health Transition Fund at Marondera Hospital. They will probably meet soon after Cabinet (today),” Tamborinyoka said.

Party spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said it was unlikely that Mugabe would take serious steps to end police partisanship as well as resurgent violence that were “getting out of hand.”

This has left the party with little option but to approach Sadc, the mediator and guarantor to Zimbabwe’s shaky coalition government.

“We are taking up the matter to Sadc and African Union (AU) to find a solution,” Mwonzora told the Daily News yesterday.

“It is important to note that this is a trademark act of the junta represented by the police headed by its leader Augustine Chihuri (police commissioner-general),” said Mwonzora.

Mwonzora said the police action was “systematically planned” by security agents to “denigrate and disrespect” the Prime Minister MDC takes police ban to Sadc while performing his duties of supervising government work. 

He was referring to the banning of the premier from touring a hospital during the same period.

“The Prime Minister is supposed to supervise government programmes and by stopping him we wonder if they still want the inclusive government to function,” he said.

He said Zimbabwe could only hold credible elections if regional and continental leaders acted to end resurgent human rights abuses to guarantee peace ahead of watershed polls that are likely to be Mugabe’s last.

Sadc, through South African President Jacob Zuma, has been closely monitoring events in the country after getting a mandate from the AU to mediate and ensure fresh elections in Zimbabwe following the violent 2008 presidential election runoff whose results were rejected by the international community.

Regional leaders shaken by the military-led 2008 atrocities are determined to use their leverage to push for the completion and adoption of a Sadc-endorsed road map to credible elections free of violence.

Police spokesman Oliver Mandipaka said Tsvangirai’s accusations were “nothing new”.

“Those are unfounded allegations. I have no knowledge of the police banning the rallies,” Mandipaka said.

Mwonzora said apart from briefing Sadc and AU, Tsvangirai would tackle President Robert Mugabe over the deteriorating situation.

“We also need an explanation from Mugabe over this issue. We want Mugabe to tell us if he still wants the inclusive government to work,” said Mwonzora.

This will not be the first time that Tsvangirai has raised similar concerns with Mugabe or Sadc.

On its part, Sadc has continued pushing for genuine reforms in Zimbabwe, keeping the country on the radar for close to a decade.

But previous meetings between Mugabe and Tsvangirai over selective application of the law and violence have failed to define a way forward, leaving Zimbabweans with little hope that Tsvangirai’s latest efforts at finding a solution will end violence.

By Daily Mail