Chikuni Gaba | A fly that does not listen will follow the corpse in the grave. Time and again we keep reminding the opposition of the need for electoral reforms but surprisingly the opposition continues giving us the cold shoulder. The key to unlock the chains that are shackling the lives of ordinary Zimbabweans is in having a free, fair and credible election, and that requires the implementation of electoral reforms first — not the sweet talks we hear at rallies or the de-campaigning of each other.
When SADC crafted a raft of electoral reforms in 2008 they gave the GNU 18 months to implement them but they failed to implement even one reform. Now we have 5 or less months to go for the 2018 general election but apparently we do not see that the government’s reluctance in implementing these reforms is working in Ngwena’s advantage. He keeps on buying time, preaching what he doesn’t practice, he promises the whole world a free, fair and credible election yet we are already in the campaigning period and the opposition is being frustrated time and again. MDC Alliance had their Chinhoyi rally cancelled for dubious reasons and we also hear their intended Marondera rally was not cleared by the police. Chiefs continue to be players or substitutes in our politics with Chief Musakwa recently declaring that chiefs will never recognize an MDC led government. The newly formed NPF party leader retired Brig Mutinhiri told the visiting SADC delegates that ZANU PF had deployed 5 000 soldiers all over the country to reinforce their campaigning team thus proving to be correct Chief Charumbira and Minister Hungwe’s utterances that ZANU PF will use the army in the election. AIPA and POSA are still in force. ZEC is still militarized. Zimbabweans in the diaspora vote have been disenfranchised and Nikuv is still hovering around, so what chance is there of a free, fair and credible election?
At an MDC Alliance rally in Kwekwe, the alliance President Advocate Nelson Chamisa threatened to stop the elections if no reforms are implemented but I think with the little time left he was really referring to 2023 elections not this coming 2018 election. Its either we run into Garwe’s trap or we let him run a lonely race and the deciding time is now. Blaming SADC for letting us down during the GNU era is unfair. SADC played their part by coming up with electoral reforms which they tasked us push through and implement in 18 months but we failed. In 2013 they even warned us against participating in an election with no reforms but we turned them down and the election was rigged again. It is like we continue to play the Sekuru Gudo role in our Zim politics. At this juncture let me warn all opposition parties that we, the electorate, are now aware of night deals whilst during the day politicians call each other names of cource vana veibwa havasvinuri musi umwe.
The newly introduced biometric voting system came as a relief to our dead relatives who used to be resurrected at each election to vote for ZANU PF only and return to their graves afterwards but they can now rest in peace. The BVR system was also manipulated from the word go. UNDP had offered to assist in acquiring the BVR equipment but our already broke government which is even failing to pay striking doctors turned down the offer. A Chinese company Laxton which was in second position won the tender to supply the BVR equipment and it is still not yet clear who will provide the servers. Chiefs, Headmen, Kraal heads and ZANU PF militias are busy collecting serial numbers as a means of intimidating voters. According to ZEC, thousands of doctors and nurses on duty on election day will be unable to cast their vote. There are still weaknesses and loopholes in the system.
A father who restrains his child from attacking a snake does not mean to save the reptile but his child. On all the doors to 2018 elections are written in capitals “SILENCE. RIGGING IN PROGRESS”. The opposition parties must unite to make some quick decisions and adopt a common policy on electoral reforms or we are in for another 5 years of suffering.