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Zimbabwe has no capacity to conduct a free and fair election, with its electoral body and other institutions failing to inspire public confidence, says a local human rights watchdog. The country is heading for the polls amid a series of serious irregularities that are likely to dent the credibility of the election.
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In an analysis on the pre-election landscape, the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiCZ) said that state institutions, including the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), had not shown readiness to manage a clean election, raising concerns over the credibility of the electoral process.
The report read:
Many irregularities have already been unearthed in the voters’ roll, giving us every reason to believe that it is definitely going to be another tool in the manipulation of elections,” read the analysis.
The CiCZ stated that the ZEC had been an accomplice in creating a soft landing spot for Zanu-PF whose candidate, President Emmerson Mnangagwa, was seeking another five-year term.
All pointers are that the delimitation process was an exercise in gerrymandering, with the ZEC a willing accomplice of Zanu-PF, the instigator and beneficiary,” the analysis stated.
It added that the ZEC appeared to be in an incestuous relationship to subvert the constitution and the will of the people of Zimbabwe. “The presence of close family members of Zanu-PF’s political elite in the ZEC is problematic by any corporate governance measure,” it stated.
The ZEC has been under fire over a disputed delimitation process that has been severely criticised for its serious shortfalls, including gerrymandering in favour of Zanu-PF. Analysts have also expressed concern over its decision to retain flaws flagged in the preliminary delimitation report presented to Mnangagwa in December last year.
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The report resulted in divisions among commissioners, seven of whom have spoken out against the delimitation report, effectively opposing chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba.
As a result of the fallout, Chigumba removed commissioner Jasper Mangwana and his deputy Catherine Mpofu from their roles as spokespersons of the election management body. The CiCZ said that the capture of state media had also rendered the pre-election period unlevel.
“The capture of state media has become an accepted reality in the country for many citizens. Fortunately, the alternative media has somewhat filled this gap, especially in correcting the deliberate misinformation spewed by the public broadcaster.
The analysis posits:
In addition, the CiCZ expressed concern over the failure of the ZEC to craft a code of conduct for electoral stakeholders.
“The ZEC has failed to facilitate the authoring of an electoral code of conduct to guide operations of all stakeholders, which is key to the credibility of the election.
“This has meant that it cannot rein in the gross misconduct of actors such as the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation, the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) through Forever Associates Zimbabwe [FAZ] and known government and Zanu-PF officials who incite against citizens on a daily basis.
Controversy has risen over the establishment of FAZ, which – as previously reported by NewsHawks – has taken over electoral processes, with Citizens Coalition for Change legislator Tendai Biti demanding in June that Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri present a ministerial statement on the role of the shadowy outfit in electoral processes.
The organisation, led by CIO co-deputy director-general and former brigadier general Walter Tapfumaneyi, has displaced the army in running electoral processes. With three members in every ward countrywide, FAZ has been intimidating people, particularly in rural areas, collecting voter information, rolling out door-to-door campaigns, conducting night vigils, holding community events and sending out technology-based messaging, while monitoring all stages of the electoral process.
FAZ’s mandate, working together with the ZEC and Chigumba, is to coordinate logistics and decisive forces to retain Mnangagwa in power.
However, ZEC chief elections officer Utloile Silaigwana has denied any links between the electoral body and FAZ. - NewsHawks
