What you may have missed August 16-20

Tsvangirai throws in the towel-Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai today withdrew his presidential election court challenge in which he was calling for the nullification of the 31 July elections won by Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front leader Robert Mugabe. Tsvangirai also said the presence of Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku at the National Heroes Acre addressed by President-elect Robert Mugabe was likely to deprive him of a fair hearing.

Gono denies indigenisation U-turn

Central bank governor Gideon Gono today accused the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation of carrying out a hatchet job on him, following a TV report claiming that he had performed a U-turn on his opposition to the indigenisation of banks. Gono said the ZBC had removed his comments from their context and selectively omitted certain qualifications to his statements before the Bulawayo business community “for reasons best known to themselves”. “What ZBC did to both of us is akin to running with a portion of a statement while leaving out a very important condition to that statement. It’s like telling people that the Highway Code says ‘do not drink’ or ‘do not drive’, when the full sentence says ‘do not drink and drive’! That’s what the ZBC did to us.”

SADC calls for end to sanctions

Southern African leaders today called on the West to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe and gave their seal of approval to President Robert Mugabe’s victory in the 31 July elections. “I believe Zimbabwe deserves better, Zimbabweans have suffered enough,” said the regional bloc’s chair, President Joyce Banda of Malawi. SADC also “noted with satisfaction the holding of free and peaceful” elections and congratulated Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party for their overwhelming win in the July 31 vote.

US won’t lift sanctions

The United States today said it will not lift its sanctions against Zimbabwe because the 31 July elections were flawed. “The United States stands by our assessment that these elections, while relatively peaceful, did not represent a credible expression of the will of the Zimbabwean people due to serious flaws throughout the electoral process,” said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. “We have made clear to the government of Zimbabwe and the region that a change in US sanctions policy will occur only in the context of credible, transparent and peaceful reforms that reflect the will of the Zimbabwean people.”

Court dismisses Tsvangirai’s election petition

The Constitutional Court today dismissed Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s presidential election petition with costs and declared President Robert Mugabe duly elected. Tsvangirai had withdrawn the petition but Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku said a petition challenging the validity of a presidential election could not be terminated by a withdrawal. “The purported withdrawal by applicant is of no legal force save to indicate that the applicant has abandoned his wish. The application is dismissed with costs,” Chidyausiku said.

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