Harare – As Zimbabweans waited for presidential election results Thursday, the ruling Zanu-PF party urged the opposition to accept an expected defeat graciously but said they would also step aside “in the unlikely event we don’t win.”
Paul Mangwana, Zanu-PF spokesman, used the press conference to slam the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) for violent protests of parliamentary election results on Wednesday that saw the army deployed and three people killed.
The parliamentary results gave a huge win to the ruling party but the result of the presidential election has yet to be announced.
Asked by dpa whether Zanu-PF would heed its own advice and bow out peacefully should opposition presidential candidate Nelson Chamisa win, Mangwana said yes.
“When you control a two-thirds majority of parliament, there’s no way you fail to win the presidential election,” he said – although technically it is possible. “In the unlikely event that we don’t win, we’ll allow Chamisa to take over.”
dpa
