The Financial Gazette

Clemence Manyukwe, Political Editor

JUSTICE and Legal Affairs Minister, Patrick Chinamasa, was allegedly given an economics book by the United States embassy authored by respected Peruvian writer, Hernando de Soto in 2003.

The following year, Chinamasa met former US ambassador, Christo-pher Dell and allegedly used some of the arguments in the same book to defend government's policies when the two were discussing bilateral relations.
In his books, de Soto says developing countries cannot develop if their populations do not own property, mainly land.
Like all the other US diplomats, Dell forwarded comments on politicians he had met to his principals in Washington.
After his 2004 meeting with Chinamasa, Dell concluded that the Justice Minister "is a hard-working Cabinet minister without a strong grassroots constituency who has gotten where he is by making himself valuable to the President".
He also reported that Chinamasa had a latent inclination to more liberal economic policies comport with the attitudes of some elements within the ruling party's younger generation.
In the intervening years, the US commentaries shifted more and more to reveal the diplomats' behind-the-scenes take on the country's leaders, that is, President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.
It has since been rev-ealed that some ZANU-PF members were even plotting to unseat their leader during their engagement with the US diplomats while Movement for Democratic Change (MD-C-T) members decried Tsvangirai's poor leadership qualities.
The premier was described as weak, indecisive and at times "doing what the last person tells him to do."
Some of the descriptions amounted to a vote of no confidence in the two leaders.
Analysts this week said the cables offer an insight on how along their political paths, the two political leaders may have lost it while giving President Mugabe and the Prime Minister an opportunity to embark on self introspection.
One thing is obvious from the messages; leaders ignore the need for political renewal at their own peril.
Leading Zimbabwean playwright, Conte Mhl-anga, said lack of clarity in both ZANU-PF and the MDC-T on succession would the root of rebellions by members against their leadership.
Edgar Tekere (now late), was the first to break ranks with ZANU-PF after independence to form the Zimbabwe Unity Move-ment in 1989.
Simba Makoni, a former ZANU-PF politburo member, was next in line in 2007 with his Mavambo/Kusile/Dawn movement, followed by Dumiso Dabengwa, another former politburo member, who is now heading the revived ZAPU.
In the MDC, Tsvangirai was left to lead the dominant faction following the 2005 split of the then united MDC party. There are still divisions reverberating within the premier's party to this day.
"People need to know clearly in their political party systems, how they can change their leaders. What are needed are clear succession rules and procedures. I think that is where the President and Prime Minister have been losing the plot," said Mhlanga.
He added that even in traditional set-ups, subjects of a particular chief would know even before their future leader was born which woman in their village would give birth to their future king because their systems were clear. Mhlanga said the other MDC formation led by Welshman Ncube appears to have learnt its political lessons well as it had a succession plan in place.
"I don't think our leaders learnt politics. Theirs was reaction and activism against the Smith regime. They were not learning politics, they were reacting to Smith," added the playwright.
"They close the space for the young. They don't invest in the youth league and give them a place in the main wing. Why can't we say this person in the youth league will be our next minister of information and when we miss him/her, there is this one?"
Apart from the misgivings by party members, a 2009 analysis of Cabinet appointments done by then US ambassador to Zimbabwe, James McGee, showed how loyalty was influencing the appointment of cabinet ministers over competence.
"Both Mugabe and Tsvangirai rewarded personal loyalty. In doing so, (President) Mugabe recycled the old guard, which will do little for ZANU-PF partisans seeking a rejuvenation of the party in order to combat the increasingly popular MDC. For his part, Tsvangirai sacrificed technical expertise," part of the cables read.
Political analyst, John Makumbe, said the revelations on the two leaders were true and reflected how the President and premier were viewed by their subordinates.
"There is no satisfaction with the leaders that we have either in ZANU-PF or the MDC-T. More importantly, regime change is the core business in ZANU-PF," said Makumbe. "If I were to advise the two leaders, I would say to Tsvangirai, there are a few people who want to take over from you and that is natural and it should not surprise you. To (President) Mugabe I would say, the people in ZANU-PF have demonstrated that they want you to go."
Makumbe said President Mugabe is unlikely to either forget or forgive the backstabbing that was done on him.
He added that by skirting the issue, the party's leader maybe contemplating "knocking-out" those accused of trespassing through action outside party structures.
On its part, the MDC-T has said that it will not punish anyone in the party who has been caught up criticising its leader while those in ZANU-PF have been left guessing about what the future holds for them after the politburo, skirted the issue at its meeting last week.
Politburo member, Jonathan Moyo, last week also asked his fellow party members to own up to the issues raised by WikiLeaks.
This week former ZANU-PF Guruve South Member of Parliament, Edward Chindori-Chininga, a former mines minister who is also the current chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy, admitted to meeting a US official, but denied any wrong- doing.
Chindori-Chininga said his meeting with the US official touched on diamonds, but he never discussed the findings of the parliamentary committee.
Chindori-Chininga added that he would continue meeting the diplomats from any country for as long as it was in the interest of his constituency and his country.
"It is very normal for political leaders and diplomats to meet and exchange notes on a number of issues but as a politician you must always know what you want to achieve in the interest of your country and your constituency. I will always be open to meet foreign diplomats and have always done so with diplomats from Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East etc," said Chindori-Chininga.
"I am an experienced diplomat who is well trained on how to handle diplomatic meetings and learnt the diplomatic conduct and speaking over many years.
"Unfortunately, Zimbabweans are taking it along political lines."