PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and deputy premier, Arthur Mutambara have insisted that police chief, Augustine Chihuri remains in office in an acting capacity pending regularisation of his reappointment.

Tsvangirai and Mutambara were speaking after a meeting President Robert Mugabe Wednesday to discuss the dispute over Chihuri and various other issues still dividing the coalition partners.

Chihuri’s four-year term expired last Tuesday prompting spirited exchanges between parties to the coalition government with the MDC formations demanding his replacement while government officials close to Mugabe claimed the Zanu PF leader had since renewed the ZRP chief’s contract.

But following Wednesday’s meeting, Mutambara said the country does not have a substantive police commissioner adding Chihuri was only acting until coalition principals can reach a deal over his reappointment or replacement.

“The Police Service Commission must be regularised so that it makes recommendations of potential candidates to the President,” Mutambara told reporters at a joint press conference with Tsvangirai held at the premier’s Harare home.

“The Principals agreed that in line with the Constitution, the President would then consult and agree with the Prime Minister on the next Commissioner General of Police,” said Prof. Mutambara.”

Zanu PF has not publicly commented on Wednesday’s meeting but senior officials said privately that the MDC formations were merely trying to bolt the barn door long after the horse had bolted, insisting Mugabe reappointed Chihuri long before the expiry of his contract.

Joy Mabenge, program director of the Institute for a Democratic Alternative for Zimbabwe added that the absence of timelines renders meaningless whatever concessions the MDC formations extracted from Mugabe.

“Commissioner Chihuri can act for as long as he wishes; he can act until the next election," Mabenge told VOA news. "So for as long as there is no time frame up to when he is going to be acting it’s a non-issue."

“The objective is that the next election outcome is not challenged. So resources need to be put in place if we are going to get results, and we hope the issue of violence will be resolved once this bill is adopted,” he said.

“Though the ultimate deadline (for elections) is March 2013, the Principals want a report on the constitution making process from the Management Committee with estimated time frames of all the issues that require implementation.”

The meeting also discussed media reforms as well as the need to reconstitute state media bodies such as the Zimbabwe Mass Media Trust, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe.

Mutambara added that the principals also agreed to take action against security service chiefs who undermine civilian authorities by making political statements.

“An officer in the security forces who makes political statements undermines the civilian government in place and should be reprimanded for making such statements,” he said.