Full Text: MDC-T Position On Zec Irregularities

The Thokozani Khupe led MDC-T party has asked for the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to follow the law so that it ensures a free, fair and credible election. The party also bemoaned the fact that it is yet to see the ballot paper which will be used in the July 30 elections, yet postal voting is already taking place.

We publish the statement in full below:

MDC-T POSITION ON ZEC IRREGULARITIES

We note with serious concerns the continued violation of section 239 of the constitution of Zimbabwe by Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC). Section 239 of the constitution of Zimbabwe clearly states the functions of ZEC and I quote Section 239(a) and (g).

239 The Zimbabwe electoral Commission has the following functions:

1. To prepare for, conduct and supervise-

1. Elections to the office of President and to Parliament
2. Elections to provincial and metropolitan councils and the governing bodies of local authorities
3. Elections of members of the National Council of Chiefs established by section 285 and
4. Referendums

And to ensure that those elections and referendums are conducted EFFICIENTLY, FREELY, FAIRLY, TRANSPARENTLY and in accordance with the law.

The MDC-T has noted and observed gross violations of section 239 by ZEC which continues to hide behind the statement that they are functioning on what the law states. The voters roll is in shambles and it clearly shows lack of seriousness and professionalism on the part of ZEC. In some constituency voters rolls some candidate names are missing and addresses not in the constituency are found in the voters roll which is a cause for concern. For example in the Harare central constituency voters roll there are addresses of people residing in Chikurubi which is in Harare East. Considering the history of past elections in Zimbabwe which were characterized by vote rigging and 

electoral fraud it is indeed worrisome that ZEC has not prepared polling station specific voters roll. The 2018 harmonized elections are polling station based and we implore ZEC to provide polling station based voters roll before the Election Day so as to avoid frustrating voters on Election Day as what happened in 2013.

In the previous election in 2013, 750 000 urban registered voters were missing from the voters roll. If indeed ZEC is prepared for 2018 harmonized elections why haven’t they supplied the print voters roll yet when we are now 16 days away from the election date? ZEC has failed to pass the test of credibility and as a party we have serious reservations with the manner ZEC is conducting its business.

For the past two decades, successive audits of the voters roll have shown that the voters roll is not a true reflection of the registered voter population in Zimbabwe. Although section 194(1)(h) of the constitution of Zimbabwe requires all tiers of the government including ZEC to foster transparency by providing the public with timely, accessible and accurate information, this is not reflected in the electoral act and ZEC has not been transparent about many issues. ZEC has failed to publish its procedural manuals, refused to put the contract of printing ballot papers to public tender and continue to be secretive about the , storage and distribution of the ballot paper. We have many questions with no answers, who is responsible for printing the ballot paper? Who is going to distribute the ballot paper?

We haven’t seen the ballot paper yet and what we were subjected to as major stakeholders was the quality of the paper. We believe that there is a sin of omission on the part of ZEC for nicodemously going ahead with the ballot 

paper printing without the prerequisite endorsement of the major stakeholders.

The MDC-T is fully aware that postal voting has already begun and yet as the interested parties we have not been notified of this crucial exercise. We believe ZEC is simply creating a credibility crisis which we do not want as Zimbabweans. There is opaqueness in postal voting and this is not in tandem with the electoral Act.  We note with concern this arbitrary violation of the Electoral Act and its subsidiary statutes. Zimbabwean elections have historically been annotated as disputable, this was an opportunity missed by ZEC to cleanse itself on the basis of the morality scale. We feel and are deeply concerned by the continued cancerous existence of immorality and lack of transparency in ZEC operations. It puts paid to the assertion that ZEC is militarized and we are garnering for a command election. At this rate ZEC is simply putting lipstick on a frog.

We are not asking ZEC to reinvent the wheel, we are asking them to comply with the Electoral act and the constitution of Zimbabwe. As a party we expect ZEC to conduct elections in an efficient manner which is free, fair and transparent. The Chairperson of ZEC Judge Priscilla Chigumba is not an ordinary person neither is she a layman when it comes to legal issues. She is a sitting High court Judge with a long experience on the High Court Bench. As a party we simply demanding for accountability and transparency on the electoral process.

• Is ZEC still in charge of the electoral process in Zimbabwe or there is a shadowy force that has taken over?

In conclusion, we urge ZEC to diligently and efficiently discharge its mandate and to conduct ZEC functions in a transparent manner. ZEC should not abrogate its constitutional mandate to any other person\s or any other organization or any other body no matter how politically powerful that person or organization is. Elections in Zimbabwe are emotionally sensitive as they has always been a serious contestation in regards to legitimacy issues. Zimbabwe can’t continue to be a cycle of illegitimacy and uncertainty. We implore the Vice President Constantino Guvheya Nyikadzino Chiwenga to desist from interfering with the electoral process. Zimbabwe is not a military state. We deserve the BEST!