ORGANISERS of the National Convergence Platform (NCP), a vehicle aimed at bringing all parties to the negotiating table to discuss the country’s worsening economic and political environment, yesterday said the project had received massive financial support from the Diaspora and local businesspeople.
By Everson Mushava
The inter-political convergence is being co-ordinated by retired Anglican Bishop Sebastian Bakare. Bakare said although no date had been fixed for the meeting, he was gratified by the amount of support given to the project.
“We have also received enquiries from Zimbabweans in the Diaspora who are concerned about the state of affairs in their home country, who have also expressed their desire to contribute to the work of the NCP,” Bakare said. “We are now in the process of finalising the selection of delegates in consultation with key provincial point persons who are part of the platform.
“Our objective is to ensure the widest representation possible across Zimbabwean society and in that regard, we are inviting students, youths, the unemployed, informal traders, civic society organisations, residents associations, business, trade unions, academics, traditional chiefs, women’s groups, farmers, the Diaspora, churches, and political leaders.”
He added: “We reiterate that political leaders are being invited in their individual capacities as national leaders and are not to come to the convention to present their narrow partisan interests, as the platform is non-partisan, but national in outlook.”
NCP spokesperson Charles Mangongera said: “The date is process-driven. We will dispatch teams to provinces to ensure that the convergence has as much buy-in as possible.” Mangongera said Bakare recently met MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai and highlighted the importance of a non-partisan platform. “Tsvangirai understood that and at the moment, this is the only national conversation to be held and no other group and political party can claim the same.”
