By Own Corrrespondent- Responding to a question on a state media program called The Chase: Delving Deeper Into Zimbabwe’s Political Dalogue, spokesperson for the MDC led by Nelson Chamisa, Jacob Mafume said there is no table for negotiation in President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s political parties dialogue (POLAD).

Mafume said this while responding to the question on why the MDC was not in the POLAD:

He said:

“There is no table. There is no table. We do not know what it is that is there. There is what we call a monologue. For you to have a table, you must have a framework. of discussion. We cannot have like in boxing, someone that you are going to be boxing with saying that they are the referee and them saying that they are also going to be the timekeeper. You will have all sorts of problems. If you have a political standoff., you have a political standoff with someone.

We as the MDC have a political standoff with Zanu Pf and Mr Mnangagwa. And President Nelson Chamisa has indicated that he is willing to have a one on one with Mnangagwa, he is willing to have a meeting where there is a mediator.

And if there is no mediator, then there is no table. We do not know where the table is and where we are supposed to go. We cannot go to a person or to a group where we have a person that we have a standoff with. Our issues have been clear, let us have a mediator for the dialogue. Lets talk about a return to legitimacy and agree on the road map.

Let us talk about the national healing, economic progress, nation building, international re engagement. We have set out our agenda on the table and upfront but we have not received a response. What we have seen is a general invite to someone’s house which is the state house. We see no table.”