News / National
Zimbabwe not on SADC extraordinary summit agenda
03 Nov 2023 at 06:40hrs | Views
Tomorrow President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa, leaves Harare for a one-day Southern African Development Community (Sadc) extraordinary summit of heads of state and government set for the Angolan Capital, Luanda.
Recently there were media reports that Zimbabwe's recent disputed elections were part of the Sadc extraordinary summit.
According to those in the know, the Summit is meant to discuss and approve the Budget for the deployment of a SADC Peacekeeping Force in Eastern DRC. The original plan was to hold the Summit virtually, which happened up to a point. Thereafter, poor connectivity in the DRC aborted the Virtual Summit, forcing SADC leaders to reschedule for a face-to-face Summit, now set for tomorrow.
Angola is the current Chair of SADC; it is not Chair of SADC Organ as is being erroneously reported by some media houses. Only Chair of SADC can convene a full Summit of SADC. Zimbabwe takes over from Angola as SADC's next Chair.
The Agenda for the Luanda Summit is now out and, consistent with all Extraordinary Summits, it is a one-issue Summit, namely DRC deployment budget, hard on the heels of a report by regional Chiefs of Staff and Defence Ministers on the same.
Talking about the Sadc summit matter, Zimbabwe's presidential spokesperson, George Charamba, said, "All this talk about Zimbabwe being on the agenda of this Extraordinary Summit is fatuous politicking by persons and organisations who think their predicament and fate is so important to warrant the attention of SADC! Both structural issues affecting Triple C and its defeat in the just-ended Harmonised Elections are remedied here at home, not in the hallways of SADC! SADC does not help opposition parties to win power; equally, SADC does not give opposition parties constitutions, structures or intra-party elections which uphold democratic norms.
Added Charamba, "Not can it be enlisted to "slay" some political opponent in the mould of Tshabangu for the edification and peace of a troubled and buffeted opposition leader in the mould of Nelson Chamisa. Simply for want of leadership and amateurish Machiavellian politics, now "does authority hang loose upon him like a giant's robes on a dwarfish thief"!! To assist him, the SADC Executive Secretary is a sub regional civil servant; he cannot play arbiter to political arrangements or questions in any member State. He heads SADC's Secretariat, merely. I thought Chamisa knew; but then, amateurish conduct runs through and through him."
Recently there were media reports that Zimbabwe's recent disputed elections were part of the Sadc extraordinary summit.
According to those in the know, the Summit is meant to discuss and approve the Budget for the deployment of a SADC Peacekeeping Force in Eastern DRC. The original plan was to hold the Summit virtually, which happened up to a point. Thereafter, poor connectivity in the DRC aborted the Virtual Summit, forcing SADC leaders to reschedule for a face-to-face Summit, now set for tomorrow.
The Agenda for the Luanda Summit is now out and, consistent with all Extraordinary Summits, it is a one-issue Summit, namely DRC deployment budget, hard on the heels of a report by regional Chiefs of Staff and Defence Ministers on the same.
Talking about the Sadc summit matter, Zimbabwe's presidential spokesperson, George Charamba, said, "All this talk about Zimbabwe being on the agenda of this Extraordinary Summit is fatuous politicking by persons and organisations who think their predicament and fate is so important to warrant the attention of SADC! Both structural issues affecting Triple C and its defeat in the just-ended Harmonised Elections are remedied here at home, not in the hallways of SADC! SADC does not help opposition parties to win power; equally, SADC does not give opposition parties constitutions, structures or intra-party elections which uphold democratic norms.
Added Charamba, "Not can it be enlisted to "slay" some political opponent in the mould of Tshabangu for the edification and peace of a troubled and buffeted opposition leader in the mould of Nelson Chamisa. Simply for want of leadership and amateurish Machiavellian politics, now "does authority hang loose upon him like a giant's robes on a dwarfish thief"!! To assist him, the SADC Executive Secretary is a sub regional civil servant; he cannot play arbiter to political arrangements or questions in any member State. He heads SADC's Secretariat, merely. I thought Chamisa knew; but then, amateurish conduct runs through and through him."
Source - Byo24News
