FRESH disagreements between President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai over ministerial functions of ZANU-PF and MDC-controlled ministries have caused a major rift in the inclusive government.

Mistrust between the two principal leaders in the fragile coalition has continued to grow, placing the unity government in an even more precarious position.

President Mugabe has gazetted the long-awaited re-assignment of which ministry is responsible for administering which Act, as dictated by the Global Political Agreement (GPA) that established the inclusive government.

But in so doing, the MDC argues that President Mugabe has taken away certain functions from MDC-controlled ministries and has assigned them to those controlled by his party, ZANU-PF.

Prime Minister Tsvangirai has rejected the re-assignments, arguing that President Mugabe gazetted the re-assignments without consulting with his fellow principals.

This is the second time the two are differing over major legal instruments in less than a month.

Recently, they differed over a new law that commenced on March 1, which required all foreign firms with assets more than US $500,000 to cede 51 per cent shareholding to native Zimbabweans.

President Mugabe passed the empowerment law, but Prime Minister Tsvangirai, as chief policy-maker in the unity government, argued that he had not been consulted.

In the latest stand-off, President Mugabe last Friday gazetted the legal instruments stating which minister is responsible for the administration of which Acts of Parliament.

In the re-arrangements, he stripped some ministers from MDC of their powers, leading to MDC’s annoyance.

The 33 Statutory Instruments show that President Mugabe trimmed down powers of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) controlled by a minister from Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s party.

ICT minister Nelson Chamisa lost some portfolios to Transport minister Nicholas Goche (ZANU-PF).

Goche thereby became the minister of transport, communication and infrastructural development, overseeing operations at state-run fixed-line telephone company TelOne, state cellular provider NetOne, Zimpost and their governing body, the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, which were previously under the ICT ministry.

The ICT ministry has not been assigned any Act.
Currently, there are four ministers that have no acts to administer. These are ICT; Regional Integration and International Cooperation Prof Arthur Mutambara’s MDC; State Enterprises and Parastatals MDC; and Science and Technology Development MDC.

The President has legal rights to assigns functions to ministers, including the administration of Acts of Parliament in terms of Section 31(d) of the Constitution.

But it is not clear whether there should be consultation now that there is an inclusive government and a Prime Minister.

This was one of the issues that delayed the formation of the inclusive government after the three parties signed the GPA.

MDC spokesperson Nelson Chamisa noted in a statement that Prime Minister Tsvangirai was “shocked” about the re-assigments and that "the MDC have been left with the shell of a ministry with vital functions taken away".

He stated that it was as if one political party had renegotiated the GPA.
“The MDC does not and will not support such moves. The party will defend what it got at the formation of this government,” Chamisa stated.

In other re-arrangements media, information and publicity minister, Webster Shamu (ZANU-PF), has assumed the Broadcasting Act; Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act AIPPA; Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (Commercialisation) Act; and Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (Debt Assumption) Act.

Co-Ministers of home affairs, Kembo Mohadi ZANU-PF and Giles Mutsekwa MDC-T, have the Public Order and Security Act (POSA); Police Act; Unlawful Organisations Act; Protected Places and Areas Act; Official Secrets Act; and Preservation of Constitutional Government Act.

These were all under the Ministry of Home Affairs previously. One significant change is that home affairs now has the Prevention of Corruption Act and Anti-Corruption Commission Act which were previously under the Ministry of State Enterprises, Anti-Monopolies and Anti-Corruption, but it no longer exists.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission is listed under the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs.

Listing it under Justice and Legal Affairs indicates that when a Human Rights Commission Act is eventually enacted it will be the responsibility of the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs controlled by ZANU-PF and not under the Ministry of Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs controlled by MDC.

With regard to Acts governing elections, justice and legal affairs minister, Patrick Chinamasa ZANU-PF has been given the Electoral Act and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission Act while constitutional and parliamentary affairs minister Eric Matinenga (MDC), has only been given the Referendums Act.