Mugabe appoints three members of his ZANU-PF political party to key positions in government ministries

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe announced on 11 October 2008 that he has appointed three members of his ZANU-PF political party to key positions in government ministries. Reports indicate that ZANU-PF members will head the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Finance. Opposition leaders at the rival Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) immediately condemned the appointments as a violation of a power sharing deal that the two parties signed on 15 September. MDC presidential candidate Morgan Tsvangirai agreed to serve as prime minister and allow Mugabe to retain the presidency in return for the assurance that MDC party members would be given key ministry positions. Appointing fellow party members to lead the three most important government ministries will allow Mugabe to strengthen his political position. MDC appointees already head the ministries of Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs, Public Service and Health. Meanwhile, on 13 October Mugabe also swore in two vice presidential candidates. The move comes before talks between the two parties on the composition of a new Cabinet. The 15 September power sharing agreement permitted Mugabe to choose his own vice presidents, but the decision to swear them in without consulting the MDC has threatened the deal. This second unilateral move prompted former South African President Thabo Mbeki, who mediated the power-sharing negotiations, to travel to Harare on 13 October to attempt to resolve the impasse. If the parties cannot reach an agreement, Tsvangirai has threatened to pull out of negotiations.