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No easy road, says Mnangagwa

by Staff reporter
17 Jun 2018 at 10:45hrs | Views
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa says recalibrating an "entrenched political system to a new administration" takes time as the nation needs a shared vision and consensus on how to move forward.

In an interview with US publication The Wall Street Journal, published online on Friday, President Mnangagwa said the transition was ongoing and Zimbabwe was on the right track.

"It's not an event, it's a process to change from one entrenched system to a new administration," he said. "You need to carry the majority of the nation with you. It's not possible to just go with a couple of friends and say this is where we are."

After existing in isolation for the past two decades, Zimbabwe, according to President Mnangagwa, was well on its way to fully integrating into the global family of nations.

"We don't believe we're an island anymore," he told The Wall Street Journal, adding: "We should be part of the global community."

On the 30 July 2018 harmonised polls, Zimbabwe's leader reiterated that: "We want our elections to be free, fair, transparent and credible."

Government has approved a list of 46 countries, and 15 regional and continental bodies to observe the elections. In reference to this, President Mnangagwa said: "You don't write an examination and mark it for yourself. If you write an examination, let other people mark your examination."

Among the invited countries are all 15 Sadc members and representatives of the European Union. Other European countries invited to observe the elections are the Russian Federation, Belarus, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Turkey. From North America, Government has invited the United States, Canada and Mexico; while Brazil, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Venezuela will come from South America.

Invitations have been extended to the Caribbean nations of Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana and Barbados. Asian countries invited are China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Palestine, South Korea and Thailand. Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, from Oceania, are among those invited. President Mnangagwa said he was confident of winning the elections, and would respect any outcome.

"The army is in the barracks," he said. "If any other party wins, we will support them as they will support me if I win."

Three pre-election surveys by the Mass Public Opinion Institute (Afrobarometer), Trends and Insights for Africa, and the Pan African Forum show President Mnangagwa is likely to beat the competition in the Presidential race.

According to The Wall Street Journal, after the political transition last year, Zimbabweans "are seeing some changes".

In the same article, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr John Mangudya explained the country's external debt settlement plan.

Source - zimpapers