THE embattled SADC Observer Mission head, Dr. Nevers Mumba sticks to his position on Zimbabwe’s 2023 elections.
“Whatever happens in the election, what we observe, has to qualify by what the Constitution of Zimbabwe says. Every issue we have raised in this election is supported by either a broken Constitutional provision an overlooked electoral act or by an abused guideline of the SADC. We have no interest to go outside our mandate.”
One of the founding provisions of the 2013 Constitution of Zimbabwe declares the Supremacy of the Constitution: “This Constitution is the supreme law of Zimbabwe and any law, practice, custom or conduct inconsistent with it is invalid to the extent of the inconsistency.”
The embattled leader of Zimbabwe’s main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), Nelson Chamisa, said he was surprised when the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) announced President Emmerson Mnangagwa as the winner of the recent harmonised elections.
On Saturday night, chairperson of ZEC Priscilla Makanyara Chigumba announced that Mnangagwa had retained the presidency by a 52.6 percent margin.
A total 11 candidates were vying for the State House in Zimbabwe.
Reacting to the election results announcement, Chamisa insisted he had defeated Mnangagwa.
“What are the next steps, what should the nation expect? There is going to be change in Zimbabwe,” Chamisa addressed local and international journalists in Harare.
“Whether Zanu-PF people want it or not, it is not going to be easy but there shall be change. We will not wait for five years, there has to be change now and we are going to lead in making sure that change comes to Zimbabwe,” he said.
“Whatever it takes, we shall provide leadership.”
Chamisa described Mnangagwa’s victory as another “coup on the ballot”.
“You cannot survive this for far too many times. This time, no further. We have drawn a line in the sand, we will not allow you to abuse people. You are not the only and last Zimbabwean. We are all Zimbabweans. We all count, we all matter and we will make sure we take our stand and we defend democracy,” he said.
“It is clear we are rejecting the election as a sham, the results. The process itself we disregard it and that is in line with what the SADC observers have said. We reject this sham result and flawed process based on the disputed figures.”
Millions of Zimbabweans flocked to polling stations on Wednesday and Thursday last week to elect the southern African nation’s president, members of the legislature and councillors.
On Wednesday, Mnangagwa through a special proclamation extended voting by another day after long delays marred the first day of voting at different polling stations.
Long queues were seen at several polling stations across Zimbabwe on Wednesday – the first day of the elections – as millions of Zimbabweans lined up to participate in the tightly contested general elections.
According to figures released by ZEC, Mnangagwa scored 2,350,111 votes, in the tightly-contested elections, beating Chamisa who garnered 1,967,343 which translates to 44 percent of the vote.
President-elect of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa. File Photo: Zinyange AUNTONY / AFP
The number of total votes cast in the harmonised elections was 4,561,222 and the ZEC announced that there were more than 90,000 spoiled votes.
Meanwhile, Namibia’s President Hage Geingob has congratulated Zimbabwe’s President-elect, Mnangagwa and the ruling Zanu-PF following their announced victory in the recently-held “peaceful” harmonised elections.
