“There is no evidence that ZEC’s 2018 elections will be credible if nothing changes” writes Don Chigumba
He is of the opinion that the ZEC is likely To Plunge Zimbabwe Into Chaos Before the 2018 Elections. Below is his opinion piece.
By Don Chigumba
I am writing this piece with the aim of appealing to ZANU PF and ZEC to seek wisdom from above before handling sensitive electoral issues.
The procurement/printing of the ballots, inspection of the voters’ roll by an independent body, dropping employees who are also in Zimbabwe’s security organs from ZEC and inclusion of the stakeholders in the process are key issues to a credible, transparent, free and fair poll.
It is evident that the ZANU PF government has totally refused to implement electoral reforms because of the reasons best known to them. The parliament (ZANU PF MPs in particular) are not ready to speed up the implementation of electoral reforms.
I got shocked when some sections of the media quoted ZEC saying that there is no legal provision for it to involve political parties in its procurement process for the ballot paper and printing. Such kind of utterances could have been avoided because they will fuel citizens’ suspicious on the level of transparency and credibility of the 2018 elections. The statement is likely to push opposition followers to their political boiling point.
ZEC should develop skills of handling angry and hungry people for the sake of peace in Zimbabwe. ZEC should know that there is no legal provision that can stop them from involving stakeholders in the election process.
ZEC should be by now working towards neutralizing temper among the opposition forces. The elections body should study carefully their statements before disseminating them for the public consumption.
Why is ZEC not willing to involve its stakeholders in the procurement of ballot papers? If stakeholders are involved, Zimbabweans will be able to share collective accountability and responsibility of the election process and outcome. Such action will definitely ensure that peace prevails in Zimbabwe during and after elections.
The credibility of the next Zimbabwean leader should be rooted in the conduct and process of the 2018 election. ZEC should make sure that the forthcoming harmonised polls are conducted under a transparent, free and peaceful atmosphere.
We cannot risk going into an election where opposition parties are disgruntled. This is not good for a credible poll. The demands by other stakeholders especially opposition should not be taken for granted and ZEC should move fast and address their demands before chaos reigns in our country.
Instead of addressing the demands of opposition parties in Zimbabwe, ZEC is busy adding salt to their injury. The suffering, unemployment and people’s expectations have already reached a boiling point and the government and ZEC should be careful with what they say and do.
There are allegations in the media that Webster Shamu was caught pants down with marked ballot papers in his car during the primary elections of ZANU PF. These allegations are dangerous because if party heavy weights like Shamu (who is a minister) are caught with marked ballot papers, what may stop him/them from tempering with ballot papers for a national election?
ZEC should therefore make sure that all political parties/stakeholders are involved in the procurement of ballot papers. The opposition is afraid of ‘election ballot thieves’ who are ministers and political gurus. If it is true that Shamu was found with marked ballots during the ZANU PF elections, ZEC should be worried and President Mnangagwa should force him to resign.
In conclusion, President Mnangagwa refused to implement the election reforms and ZANU PF MPs boycotted bills for election reforms in parliament.
Today, ZEC is claiming that there is no legal provision for stakeholders to be involved in their procurement process. All these allegations pushed the patience of opposition supporters to their limit and ZEC should take necessary actions to address this situation or accept responsibility in case of chaos and disorder in the country.
They once said ‘people’s voice is the voice of God’. Therefore, ZEC and the government should be worried about the ‘shut down’ threats from the MDC alliance. There is no evidence that ZEC’s 2018 elections will be credible and if nothing changes, Unity Government may not be overruled. ZEC should therefore be condemned now for brewing disaster and chaos.
Don Chigumba is a mixed methods research specialist, can be found on Twitter @Donchigumba