ZANU PF deputy director of information Psychology Maziwisa yesterday defended President Robert Mugabe for including his daughter Bona Chikore on an official government delegation to Japan, saying there was nothing amiss with that as other heads of states have done it before.
BY OBEY MANAYITI
The inclusion of Bona on the government trip to Japan and the decision to allow her to sit by Mugabe’s side during an official meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Sunday has caused a stir in the country with opposition parties and political analysts slamming the move.
Some suggested that the First Family could not entirely depend on Mugabe’s security team anymore due to his failing health, while others said the move was a serious breach of protocol aimed at turning the country into a monarchy.
Mugabe was in Japan for the United Nations 3rd World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction where he was also accompanied by other senior government officials.
However, Mazivisa accused MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai of trying to make an issue out of the trip.
“Not only is this another sign of Tsvangirai’s pettiness, it’s a demonstration that he is clueless about what happens in the global political sphere, especially since there is no law (domestic or international) that precludes a Head of State from travelling with his or her daughter on State visits,” Mazivisa said.
“It is a matter of public record, for instance, that former United States President Bill Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea, not only attended incalculable State meetings and functions with her father, she in fact, when her mother was away campaigning, became the focal point at the White House where she received several foreign dignitaries.”
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Added Mazivisa: “Madam Bona Mugabe has not done anything nearly as much. We refuse to buy into the narrative that for as long as it’s President Mugabe doing it, no matter how perfectly lawful it is, it’s wrong, but if it’s Bill Clinton doing it, it’s cool. It’s a barbaric way of doing politics.”
Mazivisa, who did not give a legitimate reason for including Bona on the trip, also took another swipe at Tsvangirai, saying while Mugabe travelled with his daughter, the opposition leader was famous for taking along “concubines” on his foreign trips.
