Posts by Charles Rukuni

Arthur Mutambara was a firebrand student leader at the University of Zimbabwe. He went on to the United Kingdom to do his PhD and worked for various United States firms and organisations before coming to South Africa where he started his own company. It was while in South Africa that he was approached to lead the pro-senate faction of the Movement for Democratic Change as it was known at the time. Mutambara, it has transpired, was not the first, second, or even third choice. After a dismal performance in the 2008 elections Mutambara became deputy Prime Minister virtually because he was one of the principals to the Global Political Agreement. But he was soon kicked out of the leadership of the party. There are more than 150 cables on him. Here are the first 50.

(20 VIEWS)

The Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front which lost its first election in 28 years to the Movement for Democratic Change in the March elections seemed to have designed a campaign of violence and intimidation of MDC supporters and legislators to destroy the party’s organisational capacity ahead of the presidential elections run-off.

(17 VIEWS)

The editor of the Standard, Davison Maruziva was arrested on 8 May 2008 over an opinion piece written by the leader of the smaller faction of the Movement for Democratic Change, Arthur Mutambara, in his paper on 20 April.

(18 VIEWS)

The smaller faction of the Movement for Democratic Change led by Arthur Mutambara, which won only 10 seats in the 29 March elections but holds the balance of power, managed to squeeze a major concession from its bigger partner, the Tsvangirai-led faction, when it agreed to support Morgan Tsvangirai in the presidential elections run -off.

(20 VIEWS)

The leader of the smaller faction of the Movement for Democratic Change Arthur Mutambara and his secretary-general Welshman Ncube both lost seats in the 2008 elections but their party walked away with 10 of the 210 seats in the lower house.

(27 VIEWS)

Movement for Democratic Change faction leader Arthur Mutambara who had promised to work with his rival Morgan Tsvangirai was in talks with Ibbo Mandaza, the mastermind of Simba Makoni’s presidential candidacy, days after the collapse of the MDC talks.

(25 VIEWS)

Movement for Democratic Change secretary-general Tendai Biti told United States embassy officials that South African President Thabo Mbeki, who was the facilitator of the Zimbabwe talks, was “full of b.s” after the South African leader had suggested that the leaders of the MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, should meet President Robert Mugabe directly to resolve the Zimbabwean crisis.

(31 VIEWS)

A public opinion poll, three weeks before the 2008 elections, showed that the Movement for Democratic Change was rapidly gaining support with its leader Morgan Tsvangirai pipping President Robert Mugabe and the general feeling was that people were yearning for change because they believed that ZANU-PF could no longer turn around the country’s economy.

(37 VIEWS)

Exiled businessman Strive Masiyiwa told United States embassy officials that the support for Makoni from Zimbabwe African National Union- Patriotic Front strongman Solomon Mujuru- and even the military- meant little unless they came out publicly.

(20 VIEWS)

Zimbabwe should not borrow money from the International Monetary Fund or the World Bank because this will not bring about economic recovery but will sink the country deeper into debt.

(25 VIEWS)