admin
Tendai Mugabe Senior Reporter
Government has recalled 20 ambassadors from various diplomatic missions, and two of them from mdc-t have sought political asylum in the countries they were posted to during the tenure of the inclusive Government.
The recalled ambassadors are expected back in the country by tomorrow, but Ms Jacqueline Zwambila (Australia) and Mr Hebson Makuvise (Germany) are unlikely to join their 18 colleagues on the flights back to Zimbabwe.
Mr Makuvise is said to be closely related to mdc-t leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, while Ms Zwambila — whose four-year term was riddled with controversy — was a surprise appointment back in 2009 as questions were raised about her capacity for the job.
Both have now applied for asylum in the countries to which they were posted, drawing uneasy reactions from their party.
Secretary for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Joey Bimha yesterday said 20 of Zimbabwe’s 47 ambassadors had been recalled.
He also reprimanded Ms Zwambila for fabricating falsehoods in her bid to stay on in Australia.
mdc-t since distanced itself from Ms Zwambila’s actions.
She was recently quoted by an Australian Newspaper, the Canberra Times, claiming she was not safe in Zimbabwe.
Indications are that she, along with Mr Makuvise, are afraid of returning home as they could face criminal charges related to alleged misappropriation of funds in their private capacities.
In an interview yesterday, Ambassador Bimha said all ambassadorial recalls were procedural.
Ambassadors serve four-year terms that can be renewed depending on foreign policy considerations.
“Government has no issue with Ambassador Zwambila and she was recalled just like any other ambassador,” Ambassador Bimha said.
Responding to claims by Ms Zwambila that her safety was in danger, Ambassador Bimha said: “That is false. She is trying to justify her stay in Australia beyond December 31 by making false allegations about the Government of Zimbabwe.”
In a statement published on Saturday, MDC-T said it had nothing to do with Ms Zvambila’s behaviour.
“The MDC has learnt that sometime in December the Government of the day decided to recall all MDC member ambassadors and not to reassign them,” said the party.
“The decision made this month by Ambassador Zwambila to seek political asylum after the expiry of her term is personal after she looked at her personal circumstances and what she went through at the hands of the Zimbabwe Government during her tenure.”
MDC-T spokesperson Mr Douglas Mwonzora told The Herald he was not aware that Mr Makuvise had sought asylum in Germany, but quickly pointed out that such decisions were personal.
Sources in the party said Mr Makuvise applied for asylum before Ms Zvambila and they believed he had recieved a positive response from Germany.
“The decision to seek asylum is a personal one by a person after assessing their situation,” said Mr Mwonzora. “It is up to the Government of the day to give assurance to the ambassadors in question that their safety will be guaranteed,” Mr Mwonzora added.
Asked if the two recalled ambassadors had communicated their intentions to the party, Mr Mwonzora said: “I have no knowledge about Ambassador Makuvise, but any communication between the party and the ambassadors is confidential.”
Comment could not be sought from the German Embassy in Harare yesterday as it was closed.
A senior MDC-T official said they had reason to believe Mr Makuvise had already been granted the asylum in Germany.
“Ambassador Makuvise applied for political asylum way back before Ambassador Zwambila,” said the source. “I would like to believe that by now he has since been granted the asylum.”
Analysts said there was nothing warranting applciation for asylum by the two as their lives and security were not threatened by the State.
They said it was unimaginable for Government to plan to persecute recalled ambassadors and yet the leaders of the party they belonged to were living freely and without any fear in Zimbabwe.
“All these are lies about security fears because these are people who have thrived on deceiving the world even to the extent of deceiving themselves,” said Midlands State University executive dean of international relations Mr Christopher Gwatidzo.
“It exposes MDC-T’s thrust and they must not distance themselves from the actions of their ambassadors. They should take responsibility.”
Another analyst Dr Nhamo Mhiripiri said it was a “shame” for the ambassadors to misrepresent facts.
“The whole population is behaving positively and there is obvious co-existence in the country, then we have some people behaving like spoilers,” he said.
“Why are they looking for sanctuary while their relatives are here and living peacefully. It seems they are ideologically myopic and cannot expect divine intervention.”
After the formation of the inclusive Government in 2009, MDC-T seconded four ambassadors to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
These were Mr Makuvise, Ms Zwambila, Mabel Ngulani (Nigeria) and Hilda Mafudze (Sudan). Professor Welshman Ncube’s MDC party seconded Trudy Stevenson to Senegal.
The secondment was in fulfillment of provisions of the Global Political Agreement that created the inclusive Government of Zanu-PF and the two formations.
The inclusive Government’s lifespan ended on July 31 with Zanu-PF’s landslide election victory.
Online Reporter