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Keep your money: govt tells donors
The Financial Gazette (Zimbabwe)
October 14, 2004

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/fingaz/2004/October/October14/6767.shtml

THE government, under immense pressure from the region and the local opposition to implement comprehensive electoral reforms agreed by the Southern African Development Community, has rejected external funding to bankroll next year’s watershed parliamentary polls.

Government and diplomatic sources told The Financial Gazette that President Robert Mugabe’s government, wary of international development agencies and internationally funded non-governmental bodies, intended financing the polls from its own coffers.

They said the government, accused of employing unorthodox methods to win the historic June 2000 parliamentary and the highly disputed 2002 presidential polls, was uncomfortable with foreigners poking "their noses into the local body politick".

The same sources said the government, which in past elections has requested funding from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), had already informed foreign donors operating in the country that had previously funded the country’s electoral processes, that it had sufficient resources to stage the 2005 polls.

The sources said last year the government had made a formal request at the local offices of the UNDP for funds for the 2005 polls pencilled for March but later, through the offices of the Ministry of Finance, rescinded the decision.

The government accuses international organisations of working in cahoots with the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to remove President Mugabe from power illegally, charges the UNDP has flatly denied.

Patrick Chinamasa, the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, confirmed to The Financial Gazette that the government will not be accepting any foreign financial assistance to cover the expenses of next year’s polls or any electoral process relating to the polls.

Chinamasa said the government had resolved not to accept any foreign funds for the electoral process as most of it came with strings attached.

"We are not accepting any foreign money for the parliamentary polls and we have communicated this to the UNDP," said Chinamasa. "We don’t want their money. We have sufficient funds. We are going to fund the process from our own resources. We have the resources. The UNDP and other foreigners must keep their money," he said.

Chinamasa asked why foreign organisations, which he said had been demonising the government for nearly five years, wanted to force their funds on the government.

"Why should foreign funds be forced upon us. Are you disappointed that we have rejected money from the UNDP and other foreign organisations? What are they saying about it," he quipped.

Bernard Mokam, the acting UNDP resident representative, also confirmed the government had initially put a formal request for funds to finance the 2005 parliamentary polls but later withdrew the request.

"They requested for funds but they have since indicated to us that they no longer need our support," said Mokam. "We have not received a new request for funding but we are still available to offer the assistance. However, if the government still wants assistance from us it has to put the request now if we are to be able to raise the money in time for the March polls. We need at least six months in advance to examine and then process the request," he added.

Diplomatic sources were, however, of the opinion that it was unlikely the government would turn to the UNDP or any other Western organisation considering that it had drafted legislation prohibiting NGOs from accessing foreign funding to financing their local operations.

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