By Staff Reporters
Both Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Welshman Ncube who leads the smaller MDC faction have rejected state media reports that they entered into a deal with President Robert Mugabe for elections to be held next year in March.
Tsvangirai’s spokesman Luke Tamborinyoka said:
“Mugabe cannot announce an election date in an affidavit, in as much as he was the respondent to the court case, the date for the next election will be determined after consulting other principals in government.
“The people of Zimbabwe cannot be told the date of an election in a court process, this is serious mischief that would have happened.
“As far as the Prime Minister is concerned, President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai will sit down and agree on an election date not this thing being claimed in some media,” Tamborinyoka added.
Ncube is also quoted dismissing claims of a poll deal which were made by Mugabe’s spokesman George Charamba.
“We were not involved on the March dates but we were only consulted when we were asked whether it makes sense to hold by-elections. It is impossible to have elections by March because there is a lot of work that needs to be done.
“All parties must work in good faith to ensure that we come up with an election roadmap and implement it,” Ncube said.
Mugabe was ordered by the Supreme Court to call for by-elections in three Matabeleland constituencies vacated by MP’s sacked by the Ncube MDC. In appealing the judgment Mugabe argued general elections were due in March.
