News / National
Ailing Mugabe not coming to 2011 Trade Fair?
28 Apr 2011 at 11:25hrs | Views
OLD and sick President Robert Mugabe will not be attending the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair scheduled to run from May 3 to May 7 - ZimScibes has been told.
According to Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) sources in Harare the 87 year old dictator might not turn up this time around as he is busy attending to his health and that of his wife - Grace Mugabe, who reportedly is nursing a dislocated a hip after tripping and failing a month ago.
Said a source in the President's Close Protection Unit: "I don't see the old man coming that side (Bulawayo) this year. The dates coincide with his routine checkups and he is also set to Visit Amai KuSingapore during the days ZITF would be running.
"If he attends that will be after confirming with the doctors whether postponing his critical appointment is ideal or not," he said adding that the specialists attending to the President have refused to "come" to Zimbabwe for the procedure.
"We requested them to have them coming this side to do the checkups but they said their bookings could not allow them, so we have to go back," he said.
Contacted for comment the Presidents Spokesperson George Charamba said : " I am unsure of the President's schedule as of then but I can assure you that he will be at ZIFT,' whereas Mugabe's chief of staff - Micheck Sibanda could not be reached for comment.
Mugabe, the sources say has a faulty kidney and heart which has for the past months caused him to shackle between Zimbabwe and Asian countries especially - Singapore, seeking medical aid. The President's costs of attending to his ills are reportedly a staggering US$3 million per trip, according to recent press reports.
Vice President John Landa Nkomo is expected to officiate at the trade showcase and few international traders have confirmed their participation this year owing to the country's poor human rights record and an ugly image.
To date, no foreign head of state has been named as the guest of honour as in previous years. Last year, controversial Iranian leader - Ahmahandinejad was the guest of honour and he promised great uranium deals with Zimbabwe, which to date have not materialized.
The state run Chronicle newspaper ( 28 April 2011) has attempted to woo people to the obviously quite trade fair by claiming that players in the hospitality industry are expecting brisk business as most hotels and fully booked for the showcase.
Everyone in Bulawayo and elsewhere in Zimbabwe knows well that the said lodges and hotels are fully booked because of the ongoing Movement of Democratic Change congress ( bigger faction led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai ) - which has thousands delegates from all over Zimbabwe, United Kingdom, South Africa and members of the diplomatic community from more than 76 countries.
The trade fair comes at a time when not all is rosy in the City of Kings and Queens. There is no denying the fact that companies in Bulawayo are reeling from economic challenges being experienced throughout the country and are, worse off than their counterparts in Harare.
These challenges are as a direct result of the country failure to attract international investments due to its ugly human rights record and absence of democracy. Zanu PF has claimed that the economic ills are as a result of the restrictive measures imposed by the some members of the international community because of its continued actions that are a perversion of basis standards of democracy.
Big companies like Dunlop, Edgars, Cold Storage Company, Tregers, National Blankets and the National Railways of Zimbabwe to mention just a few , are a pale shadow of their former self and most of them have over the past year been operating on a short working week basis.
The economic balance of power seems to have shifted to Harare, the capital city - hence the uproar from business and other Matabeleland based activists over glaring marginalization superintended by the Robert Mugabe regime.
Most firms in the ZITF host city, Bulawayo have shut down completely, throwing thousands of workers onto the street due to the tough operating environment. Others have relocated, or have threatened to relocate to Harare where they perceive a better business environment.
According to Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) sources in Harare the 87 year old dictator might not turn up this time around as he is busy attending to his health and that of his wife - Grace Mugabe, who reportedly is nursing a dislocated a hip after tripping and failing a month ago.
Said a source in the President's Close Protection Unit: "I don't see the old man coming that side (Bulawayo) this year. The dates coincide with his routine checkups and he is also set to Visit Amai KuSingapore during the days ZITF would be running.
"If he attends that will be after confirming with the doctors whether postponing his critical appointment is ideal or not," he said adding that the specialists attending to the President have refused to "come" to Zimbabwe for the procedure.
"We requested them to have them coming this side to do the checkups but they said their bookings could not allow them, so we have to go back," he said.
Contacted for comment the Presidents Spokesperson George Charamba said : " I am unsure of the President's schedule as of then but I can assure you that he will be at ZIFT,' whereas Mugabe's chief of staff - Micheck Sibanda could not be reached for comment.
Mugabe, the sources say has a faulty kidney and heart which has for the past months caused him to shackle between Zimbabwe and Asian countries especially - Singapore, seeking medical aid. The President's costs of attending to his ills are reportedly a staggering US$3 million per trip, according to recent press reports.
Vice President John Landa Nkomo is expected to officiate at the trade showcase and few international traders have confirmed their participation this year owing to the country's poor human rights record and an ugly image.
The state run Chronicle newspaper ( 28 April 2011) has attempted to woo people to the obviously quite trade fair by claiming that players in the hospitality industry are expecting brisk business as most hotels and fully booked for the showcase.
Everyone in Bulawayo and elsewhere in Zimbabwe knows well that the said lodges and hotels are fully booked because of the ongoing Movement of Democratic Change congress ( bigger faction led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai ) - which has thousands delegates from all over Zimbabwe, United Kingdom, South Africa and members of the diplomatic community from more than 76 countries.
The trade fair comes at a time when not all is rosy in the City of Kings and Queens. There is no denying the fact that companies in Bulawayo are reeling from economic challenges being experienced throughout the country and are, worse off than their counterparts in Harare.
These challenges are as a direct result of the country failure to attract international investments due to its ugly human rights record and absence of democracy. Zanu PF has claimed that the economic ills are as a result of the restrictive measures imposed by the some members of the international community because of its continued actions that are a perversion of basis standards of democracy.
Big companies like Dunlop, Edgars, Cold Storage Company, Tregers, National Blankets and the National Railways of Zimbabwe to mention just a few , are a pale shadow of their former self and most of them have over the past year been operating on a short working week basis.
The economic balance of power seems to have shifted to Harare, the capital city - hence the uproar from business and other Matabeleland based activists over glaring marginalization superintended by the Robert Mugabe regime.
Most firms in the ZITF host city, Bulawayo have shut down completely, throwing thousands of workers onto the street due to the tough operating environment. Others have relocated, or have threatened to relocate to Harare where they perceive a better business environment.
Source - ZimScribes
