Mugabe determined to form cabinet

 

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe says he would go ahead with forming a cabinet, should the opposition not sign a power-sharing deal soon.

"We are a government and we are a government that was empowered by elections. So we should form a cabinet. We will not allow a situation where we will not have a cabinet forever," the state-run Herald newspaper quoted Mugabe as saying On Wednesday.

"If after tomorrow (Thursday) Tsvangirai does not want to sign we will certainly put together a cabinet. We feel frozen at the moment," Mugabe told reporters at the funeral of Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa in Lusaka.

State radio said South African President Thabo Mbeki, who has been mediating the talks, was expected in Zimbabwe on Thursday to continue efforts aimed ending the country's post-election crisis.

Mbeki's spokesman Mukoni Ratshitanga, however, denied the report saying "the president is not going to Zimbabwe," AFP reported.

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai said on Wednesday that the talks reached a stalemate due to Mugabe's desire to retain control of the country's security forces, and were unlikely to resume soon.

Tsvangirai won a March 29 election but fell short of securing enough votes to avoid a run-off, which was won by Mugabe unopposed after Tsvangirai pulled out over alleged violence and intimidation against his supporters.

MRS/MMN. Original source at PressTV