HARARE – Zanu PF and MDC-T are set to share $1,408,392,000 disbursed by Treasury under the Political Parties Finance Act with the ruling party set to receive the lion’s share of the proportional government grant.
According to General Notice 2815 of 2022, published by Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, Zanu PF is set to receive $985 million after garnering 70.03 percent of the national vote cast in the 2018 elections.
Douglas Mwonzora’s MDC-T is also set to pocket $422 million after the then united opposition got 29.7 percent of the vote.
“It is hereby notified, in terms of section 3(2) of the Political Parties (Finance) Act [Chapter 2:04], that the total amount of moneys payable to political parties in respect of the year beginning 1st January, 2023, and ending on the 31st December, 2023, is one billion four hundred and eight million, three hundred and ninety-two thousand dollars only.
“The money shall be disbursed to political parties that qualify in terms of section 3(3) of the Act as follows – (a) nine hundred and eighty-five million eight hundred and seventy-four thousand four hundred dollars ($985 874 400,00) shall be paid to the Zimbabwe African National Union (Patriotic Front) ZANU (PF) which received 70.03% of the votes cast: and four hundred and twenty-two million five hundred and seventeen thousand six hundred dollars ($422 517 600,00) shall be paid to the Movement for Democratic Change- (MDC-), which received 29.97% of the total votes cast,” Ziyambi said.
The two parties are eligible for the government windfall as the law prescribes public funding for parties with at least 5 percent of the national vote in national polls.
The law was enacted after government outlawed funding on political parties by foreigners.
MDC-T is eligible for funding after a then united MDC Alliance garnered nearly a third of the national vote but the party split 2020 following a leadership wrangle pitying former allies Mwonzora and Nelson Chamisa, who now heads the newly formed Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).
CCC, although having a decent amount of representation in both parliament and local authorities in votes garnered in the March 26 harmonised elections and afterwards, is not eligible for government funding under the Act which only considers votes garnered in national elections held 2018. – ZimLive
