The health delivery system had totally collapsed and Zimbabwe’s main hospital has been closed sending hundreds of patients home. The UN estimates that over 300 people have so far died from a recent cholera outbreak caused by drinking contaminated water.

Prices are sky-rocketing on a daily basis and workers are demanding to be paid in foreign currency which is scarce in the country. Banks do not have cash and the withdrawal limits of $500 000 are too low that people have to spend each day in long queues, thereby compromising productivity. Surprisingly, the government has given controversial central bank Governor, Gideon Gono a new term of office.

The international community seems clueless and weak to handle the situation except to issue usual statements of condemnation, which does no good to the situation anyway. In a recent speech, outgoing US President George Bush charged that his country will do all in its capacity to ensure that Mugabe agrees to reasonably share power with Tsvangirai before any form of aid or assistance can be channeled to Zimbabwe. Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga has proposed that the continental body, the Africa Union (AU), must send a peace keeping force to Zimbabwe while Botswana President thinks that Mugabe must be removed by pressure and that his country is willing to accommodate Tsvangirai to form a government in exile.

Elders snubbed

Last week the government denied visas to The Elders, a group of former statesmen and prominent activists who intended to visit Zimbabwe to have interviews with ordinary people to see the real situation on the ground and identify areas of urgent priority for assistance. The government's excuse was that it had just concluded a similar process with the UN Country Team and charged that the Elders were biased and coming to Zimbabwe with pre-determined conclusions and that the visit was therefore not only parallel to the UN Country Report but also political. The Elders' delegation comprised of former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, former US President Jimmy Cater and human rights activist Graca Machel.

Civic society organizations, under the aegis of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) have launched an eternal mass action since Wednesday while Tsvangirai addressed EU policy makers urging them to "put as much pressure as they can to ensure that President Mugabe and ourselves ... come to a conclusion on this political impasse." He however, warned them that any further sanctions would be detrimental to the living standards of millions of suffering Zimbabweans but instead more humanitarian assistance is needed.

On the other hand the opposition MDC has exchanged verbal blows with talks mediator, former South African President, Thabo Mbeki whom they are accusing of bias towards Mugabe. Thokozani Khupe, MDC Vice-President has called upon regional body SADC to appoint another mediator. In retaliation, Mbeki has written a strong worded letter to the MDC accusing them of boot-licking western interests at the expense of the people.

"It may be that, for whatever reason, you consider our region and continent as being of little consequence to the future of Zimbabwe, believing that others further away, in western Europe and North America, are of greater importance...Such manner of proceeding might earn you prominent media headlines. However, I assure you that it will do nothing to solve the problems of Zimbabwe," wrote Mbeki.

As it stands therefore, no solution seem to be in sight and the people's suffering continue as the government and opposition fail to implement a power sharing deal they agreed to two months ago. The sticking point is the sharing of government ministries particularly home affairs which controls the police and the registrar-general of elections.