Zimbabweans cautiously optimistic about talks deal

President Robert Mugabe, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara on Thursday, 11 September 2008, consented to a deal to form a new government of national unity.

Under the deal brokered by South African President Thabo Mbeki, President Mugabe will remain President and Chairman of Cabinet while Tsvangirai will become Prime Minister and will chair a new council of ministers that will be tasked with carrying out the day-to-day business of government.

Two deputy prime ministers will be appointed with Mutambara expected to take up one of the slots.

The details of the deal will be made known at the official signing ceremony on Monday, 15 September 2008, to be held in front of African leaders.

University of Zimbabwe political scientist John Makumbe has described the deal as a fragile arrangement.

"This is a very fragile arrangement and no one should put a foot wrong in the next few days as it might jeopardise the effective formalisation of the deal," Makumbe said.

He said whether Thursday's agreement was a workable compromise between the three political parties would be evident only when the details of what powers each person will have are known.

Makumbe said the deal must be made to work for the sake of long suffering Zimbabweans.

With inflation at an official rate of 11,2 million percent, unemployment over 80% and an acute shortages of food, many Zimbabweans were in agreement with Makumbe that the country's political leaders had to bury the hatchet and make the deal work.

Primrose Nyoni, a teacher at a private school in the second largest city of Bulawayo, urged President Mugabe, Mutambara and Tsvangirai to put aside their differences and give a chance to economic recovery.

"We want the country to move forward. As it is, Zimbabwean professionals are the worst affected by this crisis. There is need to restore our dignity in the region," Nyoni said.

A more optimistic Themba Sibanda, a taxi operator in Bulawayo city centre, said the mere fact that the political parties had agreed the power-sharing deal would usher in enough momentum to carry Zimbabwe forward out of the mire.

Sibanda said: "The agreement on its own is important and we urge the three leaders not to be bogged down by petty issues in the deal as they would be dealt with later.

"For now we want the unity government to address corruption and shortages of foreign currency and to provide food for the country."

But Zimbabweans were generally wary that the deal would work and many question President Mugabe's commitment to the new arrangement.

Article published courtesy of BuaNews