Zimbabwe's Biti Sees Opportunity for Transitional Authority

(Bloomberg) -- The “coup” carried out by Zimbabwe’s military offers an opportunity for the country to bring in a “national transitional authority” to deal with its problems, Tendai Biti, the leader of the opposition Democratic Party, said.

“To us, this is a coup, no matter what they say, however we equally understand the reasons raised by the army as we were approaching a near-dynastic state,” Biti, a former finance minister in a unity government from 2009 to 2013, said by phone on Wednesday.

It’s also a chance for the United Nations, African Union and the Southern African Development Community to help find a “lasting solution” to the problems facing the country, he said.

The armed forces seized power in Zimbabwe after a week of confrontation with President Robert Mugabe’s government, saying they were acting to stave off violent conflict in the southern African nation.

To contact the reporter on this story: Godfrey Marawanyika in Harare at gmarawanyika@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin at asguazzin@bloomberg.net, Gordon Bell, Rene Vollgraaff

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