Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe said today he will form a new government soon with or without the opposition.
He said he would soon announce a new cabinet that the opposition would be welcome to join. But the state-run Heraldnewspaper said opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party "did not want to come in, apparently."
President Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai are deadlocked in power-sharing talks over how much control Mr Mugabe should surrender.
State media said Mr Mugabe made the announcement yesterday after he officially opened the first parliament since disputed March elections, one dominated for the first time in Zimbabwe’s history by opposition MPs.
Mr Mugabe, who was booed and jeered by opposition members when he opened the assembly, has said he is still hopeful of agreement in post-election power-sharing talks with the MDC, aimed at ending the political crisis.
The MDC said it remained committed to talks but the party insisted on an inclusive government.
"We have expressed confidence in the dialogue, we remain committed to a dialogue process that is going to produce an acceptable outcome for all the players, an inclusive government. We are against this unilateralism and arrogance," MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said.
The talks, which began a month ago, are still taking place, Zimbabwe's new parliamentary speaker, Lovemore Moyo, said today.
He also said the heckling of Mr Mugabe was regrettable but reflected MDC frustrations over the political deadlock in the country.
Agencies