HARARE – MDC leader Mr Nelson Chamisa should accept that he was defeated by President Mnangagwa during the 2018 Presidential elections and embrace the inclusive Political Actors Dialogue (Polad) platform, chairman of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association, Ambassador Chris Mutsvangwa has said.
Mutsvangwa urged Mr Chamisa to swallow his pride and desist from seeking exceptional inclusiveness through bilateral talks with the Head of State and Government.
Responding to a story The Zimbabwe Mail published on a discredited online publication linked to Professor Jonathan Moyo alleging that the war veteran leader met Chamisa, Mutsvangwa said the online publication was hell bent on makiing a meal out of an inconvenient chance encounter at an airport departure lounge.
He said in terms of the law, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Constitutional Court are the two sacrosanct institutions that can confer electoral legitimacy.
“Nelson Chamisa cannot have his cake and eat it at the same time,” said Mutsvangwa. He seeks exceptional inclusiveness that is akin to squaring the circle.
“His record since the 2018 harmonised elections paints him as a rejectionist.
“He refuses the verdict of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Constitutional Court, the two sacrosanct institutions of conferring electoral legitimacy.
“He instead seeks legitimacy from the President of the Republic who has no locus standi on this electoral issue. President Mnangagwa was just another contesting candidate in the 2018 harmonised elections.”
Last week, Mr Chamisa was in South Africa where he was reportedly soliciting Sadc’s intervention in Zimbabwe’s domestic affairs.
His efforts, however, came to naught as no senior South African government official obliged to meet him.
Mutsvangwa said Mr Chamisa will find no joy in his pursuit of reversing his crushing electoral defeat because Sadc does not acquiesce to interfering in domestic matters.
“Sadc will not set a precedent whereby competent constitutional bodies are countermanded by opposition parties sulking from electoral loss.
“This is a sure recipe for anarchy.
“I appeal to him to do the right thing first — recognise the full and undivided outcome of the 2018 harmonised elections.
“Chamisa has finally discovered Sadc as a diplomatic force worthy of attention. In the past, his favourites were Washington, London, Brussels, etcetera.
“The Sadc Summit anti-sanctions resolution jolted Chamisa into realising that Zimbabwe’s future lies with the unshakable solidarity of its neighbours.
“The political soul of the sub-region owes to the collective sacrifice of the former Frontline States in their victorious confrontation against the criminal evils of colonialism, racism and apartheid.
“Chamisa is well advised to drink from this rich fountain of legendary historic achievements. He should accord due respect to Sadc institutions and decisions.”
He said Mr Chamisa’s posture towards the inclusive Polad was unhelpful, adding that the sooner he joins the platform, the quicker he will regain his relevance.
“As a losing candidate, it is cardinal to accept electoral results,” said Mutsvangwa.
“Every Sadc nation needs closure after the heat of each electoral campaign. Alas, Chamisa has failed and continues to flounder on this crucial democratic test.
“He should embrace Polad and its politically inclusive agenda. It is an embodiment of the national spirit.
“His rejectionist stance has not earned him power since 2018. It has played into global post-imperial forces who hanker for win-lose and not win-win solutions that help African nations progress.”
Polad is a platform for political parties that fielded Presidential candidates in the 2018 harmonised elections. Created to foster social, economic and political progress in the country, it was launched in May last year, with 18 political parties represented.
