Zimbabwe’s information minister Jonathan Moyo has rejected what he labelled a ”racist” proposal by the Democratic Alliance for a road map for peace in his country.
Quoted in the pro-government newspaper The Herald in Harare at the weekend, he also said the plan was an insult to ordinary black South Africans.
”We do not want a white man from south of the Limpopo, who benefited from apartheid, to pose as a champion of salvation.
”We do not need a racist road map. We have our own land map and that is what we are following,” the minister said.
Leon proposed the ”road map” during a meeting with Deputy President Jacob Zuma last week, as the Zimbabwean government cracked down on a new round of protests by opposition supporters.
He said that under this approach, the Zanu-PF government and the Movement for Democratic Change would commit themselves to a series of goals that included the formation of an interim government.
Leon also suggested after the meeting that a sum of R15-billion — which he said was what the Zimbabwe crisis had cost South Africa over the last three years — might be put up by the international community to kick-start the Zimbabwean economy if a road map was adopted.
Leon’s R15-billion appeared to be based on a figure devised last month by Tradek economist Mike Schussler who calculated the combined effect of a loss of trade and tourists and an increase in interest rates and consumer inflation due to the turmoil in Zimbabwe.
According to the Herald, Moyo said rational people would find it ironic, ”if not just mad”, that Leon was ”purporting to be offering Zimbabwe R15-billion” when at the same time he was claiming Zimbabwe had cost South Africa R15-billion.
”What is going on here? In any event, Tony Leon’s talk about R15-billion for Zimbabwe is racist and must be insulting to ordinary black South Africans in places like Soweto, Alexandra and Khayelits[h]a, who surely must have need for that kind of money if Tony Leon has it.
”We would rather he gave it to them and stop posturing through lies and deception.”
Moyo said Leon’s statement — quoting the Zimbabwe Research Initiative –that South Africa had lost between 30 000 and 40 000 jobs and R15-billion as a result of the crisis in Zimbabwe, was fiction.
Leon said on Monday that Moyo had twisted his words and distorted his meaning.
”He’s a combination between Goebbels and Lord Haw-Haw,” he said.
”He’s an appalling apologist for an increasingly rogue regime.
”The truth is, it’s his own government’s policies that have led to the impoverishment of Zimbabwe.” – Sapa