Dialogue Should Be About Reforms - Mahere

The Nelson Chamisa-led MDC Alliance (MDC-A) will only take party in dialogue that is genuine and whose agenda is the implementation of far-reaching political and electoral reforms, a senior party official has said.

Responding to a headline by a daily publication that has been pushing the dialogue agenda for some time now, MDC-A party spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere said that the implementation of deep reforms is the only way to return the country to legitimacy. She wrote on Twitter:

The MDC Alliance will not participate in sham “dialogue” engineered by a Zanu PF proxy who usurped the will of the people.

No amount of crude propaganda will change our position as a matter of principle. Yes to reforms. No to elite pacts. Political power lies in the people.

Any political dialogue must be sincere and have as its main agenda the implementation of deep reforms.

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This is the only way to return the country to legitimacy and democracy.

How can those with no mandate and a sinister agenda lead the way? How’s this different from POLAD?

Mwonzora succeeded Khupe who was a keen participant of POLAD under their MDCT outfit. When did the MDC T leave POLAD?

What “new” dialogue push is being referred to? The citizens deserve sincere root & branch reform. We can’t have a repeat of the “Muzorewa-style” sham talks.

Any political dialogue must be sincere & have as its main agenda the implementation of deep reforms. This is the only way to return the country to legitimacy & democracy. How can those with no mandate & a sinister agenda lead the way? How’s this different from POLAD? pic.twitter.com/OJeumETaFP

— Fadzayi Mahere (@advocatemahere) February 23, 2021

The MDC-T led by Douglas Mwonzora has been pushing for dialogue outside the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) framework but the ruling ZANU PF party has ruled that out.

On its party, the MDC-A has insisted on one-on-one dialogue with ZANU PF outside POLAD but the latter has always reiterated its stance that dialogue will only take place within the POLAD framework.

Earlier this month Zanu PF secretary for administration, Obert Mpofu challenged Chamisa and Mwonzora to join POLAD if they were serious about their calls for dialogue with the ruling party.

POLAD, a forum of fringe political parties that lost the 2018 elections, was created by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in 2019. Mpofu said:

Those politicians in the opposition who think they are entitled to preferential treatment and are immune from the processes which are endorsed by many other political players in Zimbabwe run the risk of isolation.

The POLAD framework simply enunciates a common national vision that is detached from partisan egos and inter-party smear campaigns.

If they are sincere on dialogue, they must join others in POLAD.