MDC-T legislators walked out of the National Assembly yesterday in protest over a request by Buhera South lawmaker Joseph Chinotimba (Zanu PF) to play a video recording of former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai allegedly calling for the imposition of sanctions against the country.
Acting Speaker Melody Dziva ruled that Tsvangirai was allowed under the Constitution to come to Parliament to reply, contrary to protestations by MDC-T MPs.
This was after Kuwadzana East MP Nelson Chamisa had raised a point of order to the effect that Tsvangirai was not a member or present in the House to respond to the video.
“If there is any need for clarification, I will allow for the president of the opposition to come and respond. Opposition leaders are allowed under the country’s Constitution to come to Parliament and respond,” Dziva said to applause from Zanu PF members.
However, Chamisa argued that Parliament had an obligation to first advise Tsvangirai on the matter.
The MDC-T MPs broke into song before walking out after Dziva rejected Chamisa’s point of order.
Zanu PF MPs took advantage of the walkout to view the 2001 video of Tsvangirai on BBC’s Panorama programme.
In the video, Tsvangirai is heard saying that given the “threats to the elections from the military and (President Robert) Mugabe”, South Africa could impose sanctions on Zimbabwe by cutting fuel or electricity.
Chinotimba said the economic collapse that Zimbabwe had witnessed in the past 15 years was a result of the “sanctions that Tsvangirai called for”.
“It is painful when President Mugabe and Zanu PF are accused by the MDC of destroying the economy when it was Tsvangirai who called for cutting of transport ties as well as electricity,” he said.
“The British and the Americans did not have it in them to put sanctions, but they realised they had Tsvangirai’s support and here we are. The vendors who have invaded our streets are of Tsvangirai’s making and I am pained by this.”
Chinotimba accused the MDC-T of “speaking with a forked tongue”.
“Now they are crying foul over the recent (Supreme Court) judgment (that employers can unilaterally terminate workers’ contracts), but they have neglected their own workers to the extent of going to court to block their bid to get their money,” he said.
Mugabe blames the sanctions for the collapse of the economy, but critics point to his mismanagement. -State Media
7 Replies to “Chinotimba Forces MDC-T MPs To Walk Out”
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Ian Smith was under real UN sanctions and not calls for sanctions from Mugabe’s friend South Africa yet the Rhodesian economy right up to the end of the war was a lot better than what we see today. No war. No mass protests but simply just no economy. The process to destroy that economy was and is still being instigated and managed by Mugabe and Zanupf. Zanupf MPs have nothing to do. That is why they watch an old meaningless video. South Africa never even listened to that. Instead they intensified their friendship with Zanupf.
lot of nonsense
Comrade Chinos
It seems our Zanu PF MPs are very easily moved with the wrong things but never moved by the things that really matter.
Our half wit, Chinotimba is “pained” because Tsvangirai called on South Africa to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe and cutting fuel and electricity supply. The idiot blames the sanctions for Zimbabwe’s economic woes although even he was not that stupid to even suggest that SA cut fuel and electricity supplies.
In 2006 Zimbabwe discovered the Marange and Chiadzwa diamonds, valued at $800 billion; a fortune by any nation’s standards. During the GNU years the State collected $400 million in tax from the industry and still Finance Minister complained that government was been robbed as many of the operators were not paying any tax.
Since Zanu PF won the rigged 2013 elections revenue from Marange and Chiadzwa has since dried up completely. First Finance Minister told the nation that there were no more diamonds although the regime had signed a secret deal with the Russians allowing them to join in the plunder and looting. A few months later the Minister told the IMF that government was not collecting any revenue for diamonds because the industry was experiencing some financial problems.
We have plunder and looting happening at a grand scale and our MPs who should be stopping this are busy blaming sanctions that were never even imposed for the country’s problems. How stupid is that!
In Zim politics its always the pot calling the kettle black. Way more often you fail to realise who is the opposition and who is not.
Who ran away with a 50kg bag of Diamonds? Is it sanctions or Mpofu. Who short innocent people? is it sanctions or Chinotimba. Who plundered the money from the ministry of youths? Is it sanctions or Kasukuwere? Who murdered people in Chiadzwa? Is it sanctions or Mugabe?
From this small analysis you can be in a position to tell the main killer of the economy.
Listen to Temba Mliswa’s press conference videos you will tell that, sanctions didn’t do anything to the economy than what Mugabe gay gangsters did. kkkkkkkk
So Tsvangirai’s call for sanctions did not even work than corruption in ZANU PF did.
Rubbish!!! Sane men and women always make a plan…sanctions yes, but what now, how can we ease the pain? This nonsense of ZPF failing to think beyond getting aid is killing Zimbabwe. What ZPF and MDC is saying is that Zim cannot survive without EU aid. What is aid in political context? We are all know, its cars, weapons, technology, food etc…Leaders of zim you have made Africans a laughing folk. Are you saying you dont have human resources to make our own machinery, our own planes, our own cars, our own sustainable energy? Create an environment for innovation and see Zimbabwe prosper…stop this political nonsense, stop it!!!