Since 2000, slowly the Zimbabwean cabinet's authority was being superseded by the Joint Operations Command (JOC), which was adapted from the counter-insurgency agency of the old white minority Rhodesian Government. The was led by Mugabe's erosion of confidence in public officials and the encroachment of armed forces in civilian matters. While this served Mugabe's self-preservation needs until March 29 2008, it has already started creating problems for the government in waiting MDC now which will struggle to uproot an entrenched military culture in civilian government. The JOC consists of the head of the spy service (CIO) Happyton Bonyongwe, the army chief of staff General Constantine Chiwenga, the head of police Augustine Chihuri, the head of airforce Air Masharl Perence Shiri and the head of prison service Retired Major General Paradzayi Zimondi .
The JOC has its tentacles at all levels of Zimbabwean government, military officers are senior managers in the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission which inadvertently had been withholding the announcement of Morgan Tsvangirai as the next President of Zimbabwe. Senior military officers and CIO officials, led by armed forces chief General Constantine Chiwenga, have taken hold of a number of functions of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, (RBZ), bearing on monetary policy, such as the determination of a viable foreign exchange policy and managing the national money supply, Gono is just a figurehead. Two judges are former top military officers, one of the eight provincial governors is a former general. An army colonel is permanent secretary in the ministry of transport. The list goes on. Military men head the strategic Grain Marketing Board and the prison service. Mugabe's inner cabinet has four soldiers serving as ministers or deputy ministers. Many managers at the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) are ex-soldiers. A serving brigadier heads the government's Sports and Recreation Commission, and an airforce officer, Air Commodore Mike Karakadzai, heads the National Railways of Zimbabwe, NRZ, with Army Brigadier Douglas Nyikayaramba as chairman of the NRZ board. In 2006 it was revealed by The Zimbabwe Independent Zimbabwe's intelligence services had infiltrated and taken over the majority shareholding at what were previously thought to be independent newspapers, The Financial Gazette and The Daily Mirror & The Sunday Mirror which is part owned by Ibbo Mandaza (Simba Makoni's aide)As state-owned media had lost its credibility, the government regarded control of the independent press as a more viable route to win the hearts and minds of a restive population. The CIO in 2002 started manoeuvres to muscle into the Financial Gazette and the Mirror Newspapers Group's two titles, the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror, which they now control. Billions of taxpayers' funds were poured in to the project. The CIO controls those three newspapers (Fingaz and Mirror titles) they control a large stake, if not 100% of the Fingaz, and 70% of the Mirror group. Ibbo Mandaza (Mirror chief executive and editor-in-chief) owns 30%,he CIO copied its strategy of owning newspapers through shelf companies or as silent shareholders from Angola where the largest circulating daily is owned by the intelligence service. South Africa's intelligence machinery in the 1970s was involved in setting up newspapers and covertly occupying media space in what became known as the Muldergate scandal.
Below the men standing in between the people and freedom:
General Constantine Chiwenga described as a hawk -Against Power Handover as he owns 17 farms and the lucrative procurement of Gasoline in Zimbabwe
Air Marshall Perence Shiri described as dove supported Simba Makoni through Solomon Mujuru and is now sympathetic to MDC
Augustine Chihuri a hawk allegedly blocking Mugabe’s resignation smarting after his children were expelled from Australia where there were studying.
Happyton Bonyongwe is a dove – Supported Simba Makoni and was due to be fired by Mugabe in favour of his deputy Menard Muzariri.
Retired Major-General Paradzayi Zimondi is dove – Despite his public utterances is desperate to see the back of Mugabe
2 comments:
First Africa must get rid of old communist minded leaders who have killed and raped women all in the name of freedom, independence and self rule.
To solve the problem in Zimbabwe, the international community must give SADC leadership a 7 day deadline to deal with Mugabe. The President of Botswana should head the talks. Should he fail achieve the desired results, President Khama must hand over the matter to African Union. AU must come up with the final solution to deal with Mugabe within a period of 7 days. Should that fail, EU under the leadership of President Sarkozy must come up with an AU–EU draft plan for Mugabe to hand over power or hold elections in three months.
Should the elections be disputed, United Nations should set up an administration to govern the country until a new leadership has been put in place.
The old leadership must account for all human rights abuses.
p/s Sarkozy is the only EU President with the capacity to tell Mugabe that he is no longer wanted by his people.
Solomon Mujuru... Good riddance, one down 16 to go!
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