US embassy cable - 03HARARE1973

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 001973 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR J. FRAZER 
LONDON FOR C. GURNEY 
PARIS FOR C. NEARY 
NAIROBI FOR T. PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PINR, EAID, ZI 
SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL POLITICS TESTING THE MDC 
 
REF: A. HARARE 01935 
     B. HARARE 1731 
     C. HARARE 1555 
     D. HARARE 1491 
 
Classified By: Political Officer Audu Besmer for reasons 1.5 b/d 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY:  Saddled with the responsibility to provide 
services in often far-flung communities, new MDC mayors' and 
councils' effectiveness will be constrained by legal battles, 
a lack of resources, and the threat of interference from the 
Ministry of Local Government.  The MDC's victories in recent 
mayoral and urban council elections represent notable 
political victories, but it is unclear how prepared the 
opposition party is to exploit them.  So far, the government 
has continued to hamstring the MDC mayor of Harare but has 
not acted significantly against newly elected officials.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
MDC Municipal Gains 
------------------- 
 
2. (U) Though the overall voter turnout in the August 30-31 
mayoral and urban council elections was low, the MDC won six 
out of eight mayoral slots and 135 urban council seats to 
ZANU-PF's 132 (Ref B).  The modest margin of MDC's majority 
of urban council seats understates its relative popularity 
vis-a-vis the ruling party.  First, of the 132 seats that 
went to ZANU-PF, 44 were uncontested after MDC candidates 
were prevented from registering and running (Ref D).  In 
addition, the MDC had important wins in the largest 
population centers -- six of the nation's seven largest urban 
centers.   The council seats which MDC won nationwide 
represent about 1.5 million people, whereas the council seats 
that ZANU-PF gained represent only about 500,000 people. 
(Comment: Comparatively large councils appear to be skewed in 
favor of ZANU-PF strongholds.  End Comment.) 
 
Harare Mayor Hemmed in by Legal Wrangles, 
Limited Party Support 
----------------------------------------- 
 
3.  (C) On September 17, the High Court deferred a decision 
on Minister of Local Government Ignatius Chombo's application 
to confirm a provisional order barring suspended MDC Mayor 
Elias Mudzuri from performing council duties - effectively 
solidifying the Mayor's suspension (Ref A).  Mudzuri has been 
trying to meet with councilors and other partners informally, 
at least to keep abreast of city business; it is unclear to 
what extent he will continue those efforts given this recent 
ruling.  He is still living in the official residence, and 
has the official car and fuel, but is not receiving his 
salary. 
 
4. (C) The head of the Ministry-appointed commission to 
investigate Mudzuri, Jemison Kurasha, told poloff on 
September 20 that the problem between the Minster and the 
Mayor was not simply a personal one but a cultural one as 
well.  The Minister and Mayor appeared to clash over 
patronage in the culture of corruption within Harare's city 
government.  The commission, though in existence since April, 
first called Mudzuri in for an interview only on September 
19.  Kurasha said they should issue their report in a month 
or so; however, Mike Davies, Chairman of the Combined Harare 
Residents' Association (CHRA), said there was absolutely no 
pressure on the commission to complete its investigation. 
 
5. (C) Compounding Mudzuri's difficulties are his strained 
relations with the MDC leadership.  In a conversation with 
Ambassador Sullivan on September 17, the Mayor criticized the 
party leadership for not doing more to support him.  He 
complained that they were largely quiet about his travails 
publicly, and had done nothing to rein in the Deputy Mayor. 
According to MDC Director for Presidential Affairs Gandi 
Mudzingwa, a close protege of party leader Morgan Tsvangirai, 
the MDC leadership had questions about the professionalism of 
Mudzuri's decisions on hirings and firings, and tender awards 
while he was in office.  Mudzingwa suggested that at the very 
least Mudzuri might have been overzealous - incontinently 
angering ZANU-PF officials. 
 
6. (C) In August, Chombo postponed indefinitely elections for 
a new Deputy Mayor - previously scheduled for that month - 
pending the outcome of an investigation into Mudzuri's 
activities as mayor.  This was generally viewed as a maneuver 
to keep the current MDC (but GOZ-friendly) Deputy Mayor in 
office and effectively controlling the city's affairs. 
Mudzuri told Ambassador Sullivan on September 17 that the 
Deputy Mayor had refused to communicate with him for some 
time.  The Ministry of Local Government also attempted to 
suspend six Harare city councilors, the new heads of several 
important committees, in a move seen as intended to undercut 
the MDC-led administration of city affairs and to prevent a 
vote on a new Deputy Mayor.  On September 11, the High Court 
ruled against the Ministry and nullified the councilors' 
suspensions. 
 
7. (C) A September 25 council meeting descended into a 
shouting match and was prematurely adjourned over the 
suspension and reinstatement of three council employees. 
Davies said Deputy Mayor Sekesai Makwavarara recently 
reinstated the suspended employees with the support of a 
GOZ-friendly faction of about 10-12 councilors led by Mt. 
Pleasant councilor Chris Mushonga.  The council's executive 
committee, which has authority for hiring and firing, 
authorized the suspensions over the past year but not the 
reinstatements.  Davies said there are about 10-12 councilors 
who are toeing the MDC line, and an additional 20 or so who, 
probably from inexperience, are susceptible to political 
pressure.  Of the 45 Harare city councilors, 44 are from the 
MDC, one is from ZANU-PF. 
 
Mayor Working Again in Chegutu 
------------------------------ 
 
8. (C) On July 31 the previous ZANU-PF-dominated city council 
of Chegutu voted to suspend MDC Mayor of Chegutu Francis 
Dhlakama and to withdraw all benefits of his office (Ref C). 
But the High Court on August 6 decided that the suspension 
was illegal.  The Mayor took a vacation, and on September 1 
was physically threatened by the then Deputy Mayor when he 
tried to return to work.  Dhlakama spoke to Minister Chombo, 
who in turn called the Chegutu Deputy Mayor and ordered him 
to allow Dhlakama to return to work. 
 
9. (C) The Ministry of Local Government had audited the 
previous council's books and in a July report exposed rampant 
corruption.  The report implicated members of the previous 
Chegutu council who Dhlakama said were involved in a scam to 
skim tax funds without the blessing of ZANU-PF higher-ups 
(Ref C).  According to Dhlakama the Minster approved the 
auditing procedure because he wanted to root out rogue 
corruption.  The audit was more damning than the Minister 
expected, however, and it raised questions about the 
Minister's own connections to some of the malfeasance.  As a 
result, the GOZ has taken no corrective action except to 
effectively replace the entire council with a new ZANU-PF one 
in the August local elections (Ref D).  (Comment:  It is 
possible that Chombo facilitated Dhlakama's return as Mayor 
to ameliorate a backlash against ZANU-PF in Chegutu from the 
audit.  End Comment.) 
 
MDC Municipal Strategy/Seminar 
------------------------------ 
 
10. (C) On September 20, three MDC provincial heads met with 
eleven existing and newly elected MDC mayors in Matopos 
(outside Bulawayo) for a strategy seminar.  The newly elected 
Mayor of Gwanda (Matabeleland South), Dr. Thandeko Mnkandhla, 
said that the seminar covered basic topics such as how to 
work with the city council, mayoral authority under the Urban 
Councils Act, and advice on cooperating with the Ministry of 
Local Government while not submitting to irregular 
Ministerial demands.  Bulawayo Mayor Japhet Ncube told us 
that the mayors agreed they should avoid fights with the 
Ministry  which could disrupt city operations, since it would 
be the MDC mayors who would be blamed for the resulting 
paralysis of city government.  Earlier this month, Mudzingwa 
said the basic message would be to stick together, not to 
lose focus, and to choose carefully how to react to likely 
GOZ interference to disrupt civic administration.  (Note: 
Although the Minister stated publicly that he would be 
meeting with all new mayors, so far, he has yet to call any 
meetings with the MDC mayors.  Furthermore he has not 
responded to invitations from MDC mayors to attend their 
inauguration ceremonies.  End Note). 
 
11. (C) A common concern at the seminar was the abhorrent 
financial situation each Mayor inherited from the previous 
ZANU-PF mayors - all their city treasuries were in the red - 
and how to deliver basic city services while in debt.  (Note: 
 The August 30 - 31 elections were the first in those towns 
which the MDC contested since the party was formed in 1999. 
End Note.)  MDC leaders stressed that the mayors should focus 
on visible deliverables, and seek outside assistance from 
NGOs and Embassies, as the traditional grants from the 
Ministry were unlikely to be forthcoming or sufficient.  All 
acknowledged that with today's inflation, local taxes on 
residents would not cover the cost of basic city services. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
12. (C) In many ways, municipal politics can be expected to 
reflect the larger relationship between the parties here, 
with the ruling party employing legal and administrative 
harassment and its command of the purse-strings to undermine 
MDC effectiveness.  (The Urban Councils Act gives wide scope 
for the Ministry of Local Government to intervene in 
municipal affairs.)  Although the Ministry of Local 
Government has been relatively inactive against most newly 
elected, MDC-led municipalities so far, that may change once 
it has taken the measure of each and evaluated respective 
vulnerabilities.  Some local officials may attract ruling 
party efforts at co-opting; given the difficult operating 
environment and constituency pressure to deliver, some will 
likely be enticed, which could contribute to intra-party 
tensions.  As the capital city, Harare's MDC presence can be 
expected to attract special pressure from the ruling party, 
as evidenced by Mudzuri's continuing woes. 
 
13.  (C) Municipal politics will be an increasingly important 
battleground.  Because so many municipal seats are occupied 
by the opposition, both parties recognize that relevant 
municipalities can be taken as a laboratory for the MDC's 
capacity to govern.  In the finger-pointing between 
municipalities and the Ministry that inevitably will emerge 
over  municipal services, media management will be crucial to 
the MDC in getting its message to the electorate.  The 
silencing of The Daily News and other government suppression 
of independent media will handicap MDC efforts in that 
respect.  The MDC leadership's relative lack of support for 
Mayor Mudzuri -- the most powerful elected position held by 
the MDC -- is curious.  The missed opportunities to make more 
political hay of the Mayor's plight may be attributed in part 
to personality differences, but may also reflect troublesome 
institutional neglect by a distracted party. 
SULLIVAN