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Lovemore Mataire and Farai Machivenyika
The chairmanship of the African Union is not a ceremonial or titular position as the incumbent is the head of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government which is the supreme organ of the union that directs policy formulation and implementation, analysts have said.

In separate interviews, analysts said it was fatuous and petulant for anyone to dismiss President Mugabe’s recent election to chair the continental body as a non-event.

Some Western governments mounted intense pressure to oppose his assumption of the post, an indication that it is not trivia as the private media would want people to believe.

Yesterday some sections of the private media displayed ignorance of the institutional systems of the AU as they trivialised President Mugabe’s appointment.

Political analyst Dr Qhubani Moyo said it was laughable that the same people who were opposed to President Mugabe’s election were the ones that were now saying the position was ceremonial.

“The AU chairperson is not ceremonial,” he said. “You must realise that the same people who are saying that the position is ceremonial were the same people who were celebrating when there was some pressure from the West in opposing the move,” said Dr Moyo.

He said anyone who thought that the position was ceremonial was ignorant of the operations of the inter-State organs as the chairperson has a lot of influence in policy trajectory.

“The truth of the matter is that there is adequate evidence that there are some countries that were opposed to President Mugabe’s election because they are aware that the position comes with enormous power and influence,” Dr Moyo said.

While acknowledging that the one-year tenure of the chairperson is limited, Dr Moyo said President Mugabe’s reign would be crucial in that it would plant the seed that will germinate and inculcate the revolutionary spirit required to drive the union.

Another analyst, Ms Rutendo Mudarikwa, said the constitutional mandate of the chairperson of the continental body empowers him to direct the policy formulation and implementation of the union.

“The AU chairperson is the head of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government which is the supreme organ of the union,” she said.

“The assembly is the policy making body and the implementation of the policies is done by the chairperson of the AU Commission currently led by Dr Nkosazana Zuma.”

Ms Mudarikwa said the commission headed by Dr Zuma was the secretariat of the AU with executive functions.

She said the hierarchical structure of the AU comprises of the assembly headed by President Mugabe and the executive council comprising of ministers and the commission which is headed by Dr Zuma.

“To put it another way, President Mugabe is effectively the head of the policy making body which decides on military interventions among other key issues as well as giving directives to other AU bodies,” she said.

“The position that the President occupies is very influential to the extent that if he was the one at the helm of the AU during the Libyan ‘spring’, Gaddafi’s Libya would have defeated the UN Security Council resolution. In other words that position can change the course of history.”

While concurring with the view that the chairperson has great influence in the policy direction of the African Union, head of the Southern African Political and Economic Series Dr Ibbo Mandaza said whoever assumed the chairmanship must be conscious of the strains and stresses within individual regions and countries.

“The nature of the position is that the chairman cannot be very assertive even though he can exert some influence with the broader framework of the union,” said Dr Mandaza.

In a statement, the Affirmative Action Group said President Mugabe’s election was testimony of the confidence fellow heads of state have in his leadership and policies that promote the empowerment of indigenous people on the continent.

AAG president Mr Chamu Chiwanza said President Mugabe had remained resolute in his beliefs despite demonisation from the West.

“His election comes in the face of continued demonisation from the usual detractors in the West, but is a sign that fellow presidents on the continent have confidence in his leadership and the values that he stands for,” he said.

“President Mugabe is a champion in the fight for Africans’ right to self-determination and total control of their resources and his election shows that the whole of Africa supports these policies he has implemented in Zimbabwe.”

Mr Chiwanza dismissed claims that the chairmanship of the AU was ceremonial.

“Contrary to claims by some that the AU chairmanship is ceremonial, it is actually a very influential position that gives him responsibility on various aspects of life on the continent,” he said.

President Mugabe was elected as AU chairman on Friday, taking over from Mauritania’s President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

President Mugabe’s ascension marks the second time in the history of the continental body that Zimbabwe has been elected to the position.

He once led the body between June 2, 1997 and June 8, 1998 when it was still known as the Organisation of African Unity.