Mugabe says ready to hand power to a party faithful

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe wasquoted on Sunday as saying he would be willing to hand power toa ruling party ally when he was sure the country was safe from"sellouts" and from British interference.

But the state-run Sunday Mail newspaper said he gave notime-frame and again vowed to stop the opposition from endinghis rule, which foreign secretary David Miliband described onBBC television as sadism.

Mugabe is fighting for re-election in a June 27 run-offagainst Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change(MDC). The opposition leader won the first round in March butnot with enough votes to take the presidency.

The veteran Zimbabwean leader, who has ruled Zimbabwe sinceindependence from Britain in 1980, has threatened to go to warto stop a Tsvangirai victory.

The Mail said Mugabe told a campaign rally late on Saturdaythat his "leadership was prepared to relinquish power to those(ZANU-PF officials) that uphold the country's (independence)legacy".

"This country cannot be sold at the stroke of a pen," hesaid, repeating a vow not to let the MDC, whom he has brandedas British puppets, rule the country.

The Mail said Mugabe urged supporters to concentrate ondefending his government's land nationalisation and blackeconomic empowerment policies, and not on complaints by what hecalled "sellouts" that ZANU-PF has been in power for too long.

Zimbabwe's agricultural sector, once one of the mostprosperous in Africa, has collapsed, and shortages of bread,milk and meat are common. Inflation is running at 165,000percent and unemployment is 80 percent.

Two top officials, including former finance minister SimbaMakoni, who stood against him in presidential elections inMarch, quit Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF party early this year,saying he did not want to retire.

"I WILL NOT GROW OLD"

Mugabe said "the country's leaders would pass on the batonto individuals that are known to be committed to Zimbabwe'sindependence ideals," the newspaper quoted him as saying.

"We are the custodians of Zimbabwe's legacy. We will passthis on to those we know are fully aware of the party'sideology, those who value the country's legacy. We will pass onleadership to them, telling them to move forward."

Mugabe has previously said he did not want to name an heirover fears he or she would become a target of other officialsnursing ambitions to succeed him as ZANU-PF leader.

The 84-year-old president gave no timetable for hispossible retirement and added: "But as long as the Britishstill want to come here, I will not grow old; until we know weno longer have sellouts among us."

Mugabe this week threatened that he and his independencewar veterans will take up arms again to stop the MDC takingpower.

The MDC and rights groups say ZANU-PF have launched abrutal campaign of violence which has killed at least 66 MDCactivists, wounded hundreds others and displaced tens ofthousands since the March 29 election.

Miliband said South Africa had a responsibility to do moreto bring pressure on its neighbour, and condemned the violencethat has marred the run-up to the election.

"The first thing is to be clear about the sadism, and I usethat word advisedly, that's going on ... in Zimbabwe," he toldBBC television.

"People being killed, people being tortured, people beingbeaten. Election observers being stripped out, electionofficials being stripped out... It's important that we speakplainly and frankly about that."

Tsvangirai says he is still confident of victory despite anintimidation campaign that has seen him being detained severaltimes this month.

The party's secretary-general Tendai Biti was arrested onThursday on what critics call trumped up treason charges, andis expected to appear in court on Monday.

(Editing by Gordon Bell)