Zimbabwe: Mugabe to Go This Year - Tsvangirai

President Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday said President Robert Mugabe's "inevitable end was nigh" and vowed that the opposition party would remove the Zanu PF strongman from power this year.

Tsvangirai said this while addressing about 10 000 party supporters outside Mucheke Stadium as part of his countrywide by-election boycott campaign rallies.

The rally was held outside the stadium because the venue had already been booked by a church group.

However, the MDC-T leader did not say how his party was going to unseat the 91-year-old Zanu PF leader this year.

Tsvangirai said Zimbabweans had lost faith in the ballot, but ruled out violence. He however warned that if the worst comes to the worst, Zimbabweans would "liberate themselves."

"Zanu PF will never believe in the vote of Zimbabweans to elect a leadership of their choice. They will not give us a chance. We have tried removing Mugabe from power through the ballot but it has failed because conditions for a free and fair poll are not there," Tsvangirai said.

Tsvangirai has lost several times to Mugabe but alleged the elections were rigged.

In March 2008, he won the first round of a bruising fight with a slight margin, but failed to garner the 50% plus one vote as was required by the Constitution for one to win the election. He boycotted the subsequent June presidential election run-off after violence was unleashed against his supporters.

"We are boycotting all elections until reforms are implemented. But our next position after the election boycott is serious... We cannot wait until 2018. This year is the people's year. We shall act to liberate ourselves so that Mugabe listens to the voice of reason," Tsvangirai said.

"I am prepared to give the last breath of my life to liberate ourselves. If the worst comes to the worst, we will free ourselves. We have no violence; we will not liberate ourselves through force or the bullet, but victory is certain."

Tsvangirai said Zanu PF, under the current free-falling economy, had reached a dead-end.

"Mugabe is no longer going anywhere. Zanu PF's inevitable collapse is almost assured," he said.

(Zimbabwe Standard)