Jonathan Moyo had posted
on Twitter that, "These are the wages of rigging by the military, which
now rigs elections in the rural areas brazenly and openly. For ZANU PF to keep
winning, it needs the military to keep rigging, and the rural areas to remain
rural. ZANU PF has no future in an urbanized and developed Zimbabwe.
Zero!"
When asked by one user
whether the army started rigging post November 2017 coup Moyo said, "Of
course not. I was a victim of their rigging on 2013 and I took them to court
all the way up to the Supreme Court. I also took George Chiweshe to court in
2008 over rigging issues. Needless to say I lost the court battles. But aluta
continua!"
Jonathan Moyo is
confirming something we have known all along. The question we have to ask is
why is the opposition continuing to participate in elections we all know are
flawed and illegal?
This is a rhetorical
question because we all know the answer to that – greed.
“The worst aspect for me
about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the
obvious – withdraw from the (2013) elections,” confessed David Coltart, MDC
minister of Education in the 2008 to 2013 GNU.
“The electoral process was
so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would
compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the
MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would
remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”
Three of the main MDC
factions did form a coalition before last year’s election and still they
participated in the elections knowing fully well Zanu PF will rig the elections;
proof MDC would have participated in the elections coalition or no coalition.
Indeed, last year’s
elections saw a record number of opposition parties, 130, and candidates, 23 in
the presidential race alone, participating in the elections. Even ZEC’s blatant
failure to produce something as basic as a verified voters’ roll a month before
nomination day, as is required by law and common sense, did not in any way,
shape or form dampen the opposition’s enthusiasm in the elections.
The one thing Zanu PF
learned during the 2008 to 2013 GNU was that as long as the party allows the
opposition to win a few gravy train seats, the party can continue rigging
elections as before and still be guaranteed of opposition participation.
So, it is not Zanu PF
rigging elections that we should be concerned about but how to stop the
opposition participating and giving credibility to a flawed and illegal process.
We, the electorate, need to wake-up to the political reality that MDC has been
running with the hare and hunting with the Zanu PF hounds for scraps! And until
we do, there will be no free, fair and credible elections in Zimbabwe.
After 39 years of Zanu PF "brazenly and openly rigging elections" one would think the penny would have dropped a lot time ago and everyone would be focused on why Zanu PF is still able to do this. People would be all over MDC leaders like a rash especially after MDC had been warned not to participate in elections without first implementing the reforms.
ReplyDeleteBefore last year's elections, Chamisa insisted MDC "had stringent measures to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections!" Zimbabweans have since done nothing to hold his legs to the fire!
Indeed, even after the EU, American, etc. confirmed Zanu PF rigged last year's elections and gave detailed reports of the rigging still it did not register in many people's minds. It was all water off a duck's back.
Now that it is clear that MDC are quite happy with the scraps Zanu PF is offering them for participating in rigged elections the nation has a lot more complex and subtle then yesterday of simply fighting Zanu PF.
If the nation is ever to get the democratic reforms implemented necessary for the holding of free, fair and credible elections; it is not enough to complain of Zanu PF rigging elections when MDC leaders will not only implement the reforms but are endorsing the elections as free and fair by their participation. We must now show that MDC leaders are no longer representing anyone but themselves; easier said than done when there are hundreds of thousands of MDC supporters who continue to follow the corrupt and incompetent leaders faithfully like sheep to the slaughter!
@ Joh So
ReplyDelete“These rigging songs are getting old Nomsa. C'mon...lots of people have left Zanu and we still don’t have proof how the so-called rigging works. Just admit, Zanu knows how to campaign. Zanu doesn’t buy votes. It does what every responsibly gvt worldwide do. Support the poor in the villages. It’s a gvt responsibility to help people in the villages who cannot afford to buy farming inputs. The rain season is around the corner and people needs seed packs and Zanu will provide. The opposition should support that and tell the villagers that when they get into power, they will give more help than Zanu. Simple calculation.”
There is a world of difference between “not knowing how Zanu PF rigs elections” and refusing to admit the rigging even when if one was presented with a mountain of evidence of rigging. In you case you are either refusing to admit there is rigging or you are one of those mentally challenged. You see but do not perceive, hear but do not understand and are going through life blissful unaware of anything of substance. Either way, yours is a wasted life.
You may find comfort in the knowledge you are not alone, Zimbabwe has more than its fair share of village idiots hence the reason the country is up to her eyes in s***t. If there is a God and I ever got a chance to ask Him then I would want to know why Zimbabwe got so many village idiots!!!!!
By virtue of his white race, David Coltart got a five star education and up bringing that was denied to blacks because they were blacks. So a lot was expected of him than his fellow black MDC leaders like Tendai Biti, Weshman Ncube, with a bit of grey stuff between their ears much less the likes of Morgan Tsvangirai and Nelson Chamisa who have plenty of fatty tissue and little else. It is therefore infuriating that Coltart should be repaying the nation by giving MDC leaders foolish advice.
ReplyDeleteWhat Zimbabwe needs right now is for Mnangagwa and his cronies to step down so the nation can appoint an interim administration to implement the reforms. This National Transition Authority is a waste of time and opportunity both of which the nation can ill afford!
To those to whom a lot was given, a lot is expected in return; that is not too much to ask! Of course, it is infuriating that the nation now has to fight not only the Zanu PF thugs for change but also fight these MDC sell-outs too!