Zimbabwe Update 'Facts, Lies and the Truth'

Has the GNU FAILED –“FACTS, LIES AND THE TRUTH”

By Dumisani O. Nkomo  (posted with permission)

Two years ago the Government of National Unity (GNU) or the Inclusive government was set up on the basis of the Global Political Agreement (GPA). The agreement came about as a result of inconclusive elections which had seen President Robert Mugabe being beaten by Morgan Tsvangirai and ZANU-PF losing its parliamentary majority to the two MDC formations. The GNU and its implementation framework achieved a number of things for all the three political parties and the people of Zimbabwe as a whole. However, two years later ZANU-PF and President Mugabe claim the Inclusive government has failed. This is in spite of the fact that the agreement and its attendant governance structure-the GNU- gave Mugabe legitimacy and the people of Zimbabwe room to breathe in a much better economic environment .Has the government of National Unity failed? Who says it has failed and why? What indicators can we use to measure its success or failure? Why does ZANU PF or Mugabe want the inclusive government to come to an end? .I would like to argue that an end of the inclusive government may bring us back to the pre-2008 days and we may be back to another inconclusive election or disputed election .A quick fix election and a pre-mature end of the GNU together with the GPA may not be a step forward but rather may see us moving around in circles rather than moving forward The GNU can only be judged according to the framework that created it which is the GPA. Pertinently there are over 27 areas of the GPA which the GNU has failed to implement. This article primarily focuses on the successes and failures of the GNU as envisioned and anticipated in the GPA

What ZANU PF WANTED FROM THE GNU

Mugabe and ZANU-PF needed three things from the GNU and these included but are not limited to:

1. Legitimacy

2. Time to retreat, re organize whilst allowing the two main MDC‘s to deal with the harder issues of reviving the government and getting the government to work again

3. Removal of sanctions /restrictive measures or whatever one chooses to call them 

The GNU however has frustrated ZANU-PF in the following ways:

1. It has forced them on the path of fundamental democratic reforms- a concept that they are quite alien to.

2. It forced Mugabe to be more accountable to the other GPA Partners although he routinely ignores them .Surprisingly he has been more than keen to consult the other principals about the Welshman Ncube –Mutambara saga

3. It has limited their access to state resources

The two MDC‘s strategic objectives were to gain access to the levers of power ,to influence the economic and political direction of the country through fundamental democratic reforms .The MDC formations have not totally achieved these objectives as power has continued to be vested in ZANU-PF and president Mugabe as evidenced by his unilateral appointments of ambassadors ,governors .The MDC formations have managed to provide stability in the government through their control of critical social and economic ministries .It must be remembered that when the GNU was created the economy and the social sector had literally been decimated by ZANU-PF. Whilst the MDC formations were religiously implementing most of the items of the GPA, ZANU-P.F was nicodemously rebuilding its structures and doing all it could to make sure the agreement failed. This worked for as long as it gave the party space to re-organize .This is not to say that all MDC ministers are angels or paragons of virtue and all ZANU-PF ministers are devils and demons but ZANU-PF ministers represent and are part of an evil and mafia like system whilst the two MDC formations purport to be part of a system that is epitomized by democracy (whatever that is).

Stumbling blocks against GPA Goals

If we were to use measurable and verifiable indicators to measure the Inclusive Government’s success or failure rate the GPA is the most useful barometer to use. Obviously there were many intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influenced failure or ability to implement the GPA. Amongst these factors are:

1. Political will or lack thereof from the three political parties

2. Ineffectiveness of the GPA in implementation and lack of oversight structures.

3. External factors or mechanisms such as SADC and the AU and the Facilitator, that is, South Africa as envisaged in article 22.6

Achievements –Economic Policies

The GNU has managed to bring sanity to the economy through the Short Term Emergency Recovery Programmes –STERP I AND STERP 2 which have managed to address issues pertaining to runaway inflation and economic instability. Basic commodities such as bread, milk, mealie-meal are now readily available even though the country’s supermarket have been flooded with foreign products to the detriment of locally produced goods .However four years ago the situation was completely different as it was not difficult not only to get relish for sadza but even to get sadza for the relish .The inclusive government must be commended for this.

The inclusive government was yet to effectively conclude the setting up of the National Economic Council which is supposed to consist of representatives of the parties, the manufacturing sector, commerce, finance, labour, academia and other stakeholders (Article 3 c of G.P.A)

STERP as an indicator of success of failure

The Inclusive Government’s economic policy, STERP, appears to have been rather over ambitious in that it sought to solve a broad spectrum of socio –economic and political issues such as:

Political and governance issues

Social protection-food, health education and vulnerable sectors

Economic stabilization including capacity utilization in all sectors (rather ambitious), restoring the value of the currency, ensuring availability of basic commodities

And rehabilitation of collapsed social, health and education sector (2011 National Budget Statement)

To all intents and purposes however the economy was beginning to show some signs of life with investors showing interest in the country. Despite these positives, ZANU-PF went on its usual path of economic suicide by tabling controversial indigenization laws, demanding elections, engaging in an organized and confusing fresh spate of invasions and violence in and around Harare.

Failures of the Inclusive Government

The Inclusive Government failed to implement the following aspects of its own bible-the GPA. These failures include;

a) The constitution making process as articulated in article 6 missed all its targetted deadlines and was characterized by intimidation, disorganization and chaos.

b) Promotion of equality, national healing, cohesion and unity- besides setting up a structure and a secretariat of the organ which has failed to work.

c) Free political activity –war veterans, ZANU-PF youths continue to disrupt free political activity as evidenced by the mayhem in Harare.

d) Rule of law, respect for the constitution and other laws –the police have applied the law selectively and have stood by as ZANU-PF youths engaged in looting and violence in Harare .The police instead as evidenced by Commissioner General Chihuri’s statements on Zimbabwe Broadcasting .Corporation (ZBC) or is it Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings (ZBH), that they have taken sides with the perpetrators and arrested victims.

e) State organs such as the police and the army have failed to be impartial with senior officers openly siding with ZANU-PF and declaring that change in Zimbabwe cannot be brought about by a mere pen (in reference to voting /elections) .The GPA is abundantly clear in stating that state organs and institutions do not belong to any party and should be impartial in the discharge of their duties (Article 13:1). Also, Impartiality and neutrality of traditional leaders (article 14) has been lacking. In fact the traditional leaders openly stated their support for Mugabe and ZANU-PF at the their conference

f) Sanctions and measures (article 4)-there has been failure to conclusively deal with this issue

g) Article 5- an independent land audit was supposed to have been conducted

h). Article 28-Security of persons and prevention of violence –Jabulani Sibanda ,Douglas Nyikayaramba and their acolytes have become “apostles and harbingers” of violence without any attempt by law enforcement agents to bring them to book. To this end, there was no security of persons in the constitutional outreach programme and in parts of Harare and its environs which have been engulfed in violence.

i) Article 29- Freedom of expression and communication – airwaves have not been freed and licenses have not been given to independent broadcasters. ZANU-PF has continued to abuse the public media with ZBH and the state newspapers literally becoming the public relations arm of the former ruling party 

FRAMEWORK AND FUNCTIONING OF THE GNU

In terms of the agreement the president is supposed to make all key appointments “in consultation with the other signatories of the GNU”. However, Provincial Governors, the Attorney General and Ambassadors have all been unilaterally appointed.

Implementation Mechanisms

The Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (JOMIC) which is supposed to ensure the “full implementation of the G.P.A” has largely been a paper tiger .JOMIC cannot be blamed for this, as this is more of a structural defect in that one can hardly hope to bring one’s principals to account.

The agreement also envisages SADC, the AU and the facilitator to “guarantee and underwrite the GPA”. Instead of underwriting the agreement they seem to have undertaken for it and making sure that it is ready for the mortuary and its  subsequent burial .Frankly in spite of all these well documented failures to implement the agreement, SADC has failed to play its part .

Conclusion

The failure of the inclusive government are predicated on the above mentioned facts but importantly the role of  implementation mechanisms have played a large part in the lack of efficacy in implementing the GPA. ZANU-PF and its principal have acted as if there was no agreement, whilst SADC, the AU and South Africa as the guarantors of the GPA have failed to play their role .The GPA on paper provides a reasonable roadmap to democratization, growing economy, free and fair elections. However, it is the political will that is lacking on the part of ZANU-P.F and the guarantors of the covenant. Civil society, opposition parties and the International Community should continue to play a major role in ensuring that the GPA partners are accountable for what they put on paper. By the way it is interesting to point out that that the GPA states that the “agreement and the relationship agreed to hereunder” and I infer that the relationship is the framework of the GNU will be “reviewed at the conclusion of the constitution making process”.

Dumisani Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust and principal spokesperson of the Matabeleland Civil Society Consortium. He can be contacted on dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com