Mujuru says no to foreign observers

Vice-President Joice Mujuru, considered by the West to be a reformist within the Zimbabwe African national Union-patriotic Front, has said that Zimbabwe will not allow foreign observers for its elections scheduled in four to five months time. “Why should we be monitored by other countries outside the Southern African Development Community when we are a sovereign state?” she asked mourners at the funeral of John Mayowe, Zimbabwe’s former ambassador to the democratic Republic of Congo. “Let us be wary of foreign interference in our internal politics. Some countries, particularly those which have imposed illegal sanctions on us, wish to pursue their interest at our expense by imposing themselves on our national election processes so as to influence the outcome in their favour. Ngatiitei chirwirangwe (Let us be united),’’ she was quoted as saying. Mujuru has been touted as a moderate who can easily work with the West and the Movement for Democratic Change. Her sentiments, if they were not those of President Robert Mugabe who was out of the country at the time, could be an indication that the tide has changed and everyone wants to be on the winning side as the country heads for elections.

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