On this day, 31st October 2023, all SADC nationals should hang their heads in shame, all flags in all the SADC countries should fly at half mast, because on this day our SADC leaders have decided to endorse vote rigging Zanu PF as the legitimate winner of 23 August 2023 Zimbabwe elections. This is contrary to the region’s own election observer team’s findings.
"Your Excellencies allow me congratulate President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe and His Majesty King Mswati III, the King of Eswatini for the exemplary elections that were recently conducted in your countries where tranquility and the orderly manner in which they took place constituted major victory of democracy and a contribution to peace, stability and harmony among all living forces of the Republic of Zimbabwe and the Kingdom of Eswatini.” Announced SADC Chairperson and President of Angola João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço during the opening of the SADC Extraordinary Summit held virtually this morning.
This is a far cry from the SADC Election Observer Mission (SEOM) damning report!
“Conclusion 13.3
The SEOM noted that, as detailed in sections 6 and 7 of this report, some aspects of the Harmonised Elections fell short of the requirements of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the Electoral Act, and the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections (2021),” stated the report.
Some people would argue that this is not new, SADC has endorsed rigged elections in the past. True! The subtle but important difference is that this is the first time the SADC leaders have defied their own election observer. SEOM condemned Zimbabwe elections as flawed and illegal and the regional heads are sweeping the report under the carpet to grant Zanu PF political legitimacy.
What is the point of having the SADC principles and guidelines on democratic elections if there are no consequences for disregarding them? The decision by SADC leaders to grant vote rigging Zanu PF regime legitimacy will have far reaching disastrous consequences for Zimbabwe and the rest of the region for generations to come.
Very few countries in the region have a history of holding free, fair and credible elections and Zimbabwe is one of those countries. After this foolish decision by SADC leaders, many more countries will be encouraged to rig elections.
Zimbabwe is a failed state precisely because the nation has failed to hold free, fair and credible elections. Yes, the country has had many opportunities to end the Zanu PF dictatorship with the best chance coming during the 2008 to 2013 GNU and we wasted that opportunity. Alas! we have wasted everyone of these opportunities.
In condemning these 2023 elections, SEOM had offered the nation a life-line out of this vicious cycle of rigged elections and bad governance. By disregarding the SEOM report and granting Zanu PF legitimacy, SADC leaders, in their collective stupidity, have just cut that life-line setting Zimbabwe adrift in the middle of the flooded and rough Zambezi River.
Another five more years of the this corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship is unthinkable. What a nightmare!
Worst of all, this is nothing to hope for at the end of the five years because no meaningful democratic reforms will be implemented and the 2028 elections will yet another rigged election! Chamisa and his opposition friends will participate in the flawed 2028 elections for the same reason they participated in the 2023 and past elections -greed. And it is not as if they do not know what they are doing. They know it.
“The (2013) 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,” confessed David Coltart in his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe.
Now that SADC leaders have snuffed out any hope of the regional body forcing Zanu PF and their side kick CCC to hold free and fair elections; there is only one hope for breaking this deadlock - violence.
Rigging elections has delayed regime change but not stopped. Change is unstoppable. Those who stifled peaceful and orderly democratic change have, per se, opted for violent and disruptive change. And God only knows how that will end! This is the poisoned cup every one in his right mind would avoid but Zimbabwe is now being forced to drink, thanks to the breath-taking stupidity of our SADC leaders!
“Congratulate President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe for the exemplary elections that will bring peace, stability and harmony!” Expect we all know the elections were rigged and Zimbabwe is now a sitting duck awaiting for the violent street protests and/or another coup, the only option left to bring about regime change in Zimbabwe!
We had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms during the 2008 to 2013 GNU and we wasted it. Now we are going to regret our folly at luxury and our suffering is going on and on!!
ReplyDeleteThis is a very sad day for SADC. The regional body has lost the little political credibility it had. It cannot even up hold its own election report!
ReplyDelete"You Can Negotiate Anything" by Herb Cohen is a classic guide to negotiation. Here are nine key lessons from the book:
ReplyDelete1. Information Is Power: Gather as much information as possible about the other party, their needs, and the situation. Knowledge is a critical asset in negotiation.
2. Aim for Win-Win: Strive for outcomes where both parties benefit, rather than a win-lose scenario. Negotiation should be cooperative, not combative.
3. The Importance of Timing: Timing can significantly impact the outcome of negotiations. Be aware of when to make offers and when to be patient.
4. Understanding Emotions: Recognize and manage emotions in negotiation, both your own and those of the other party.
5. The Power of Silence: Silence can be a powerful tool in negotiation. Don't be afraid to pause and give the other party room to respond.
6. Use Persuasion Techniques: Learn and apply various persuasion techniques, such as framing and anchoring, to influence the other party's decisions.
7. Maintain Flexibility: Be willing to adjust your strategy and approach as negotiations progress. Rigidity can hinder successful outcomes.
8. Leverage Your BATNA: Understand and utilize your Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (BATNA) to give you confidence and negotiation leverage.
9. Negotiation as a Process: Negotiation is an ongoing process that involves both verbal and nonverbal communication. Mastering the process is key to success.
These lessons provide a foundation for effective negotiation, whether in business, personal relationships, or any other context. Herb Cohen's book offers practical guidance and real-world examples to help readers improve their negotiation skills.
REGIONAL body SADC has finally congratulated President Emmerson Mnangagwa on his electoral victory, two months after the contested polls, with his Angolan counterpart João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço describing them as exemplary.
ReplyDeleteSADC had delayed extending its congratulations while awaiting their Election Observer Mission (EOM) to present a final report.
His description of the polls is however not in tandem with what SADC's EOM pointed out during Zimbabwe's August 23 and 24 polls.
The initial report highlighted massive anomalies which include delays in delivering voting material to perceived opposition strongholds, voter intimidation, vote buying, abuse of the judiciary and suppressed access to publicly owned media which was dominated by ruling Zanu PF.
By ignoring SADC’s own damning election report SADC leaders have just shot themselves in the foot. How can the region body claim to have any political credibility when it is told by its own officials that some one has broken its own principles and guidelines and the leaders ignore it!!!!
The article suggested that “Chamisa is left a mountain to climb after SADC says Zimbabwe polls were ‘exemplary’.” Whilst it is true that Chamisa has claimed the elections were rigged one has to accept that this is just political posturing on the part Chamisa. Before the elections he boasted that he he closed all the vote rigging loop-holes when it was clear he had no done any such thing. It turned out that he even failed to have an election agent at each polling station - one of the most basic vote rigging counter measures!
The truth is Chamisa and company KNEW that the elections were flawed, that participating would only give SADC the excuse to grant Zanu PF legitimacy. Still he and the rest of the opposition participated regardless because they also knew that Zanu PF would give away a number of gravy train seats as bait. It was the same reasons - incompetence and greed - MDC leaders failed to implement even one reform during the GNU.
Chamisa and company have never openly admitted they are participating in the flawed elections out of greed and incompetence - who would. They have told their ignorant and naive followers the opposition has devised winning in rigged elections strategies - dum excuses especially after 43 years of rigged elections. The surprise is there have been plenty dum enough to believe hen’s teeth strategies!
As for Chamisa himself, he will have no mountain to climb explaining why the elections were rigged, he knew the process was flawed. He earned his keep by conning the ignorant and gullible electorate into participating no matter how flawed the process got to give the process credibility.
CCC call upon SADC Summit to observer body's own damning Zimbabwe election report. How ironic considering it was the MDC/CCC leaders themselves who sold out by failing to implement even one reforms during the GNU and even after SADC condemned the 2023 elections they defied the report to take up their gravy train seats!
ReplyDeleteCCC have conned povo for 23 years in participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy for the leaders' selfish gain. Enough is enough!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip_pkldCWfE
@ Nigel
ReplyDelete“Conclusion 13.3
The SEOM noted that, as detailed in sections 6 and 7 of this report, some aspects of the Harmonised Elections fell short of the requirements of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the Electoral Act, and the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections (2021),” stated the SEOM report.
To me this means the elections were rigged.
Does this mean the elections were free, fair and credible to you?
There are other more important issues to deal with than splitting hairs! I am not a diplomat and so do not see the need why I should be force to use diplomatic language. In these elections ZEC failed to produce something as bait as a verified voters’ roll; I do see how anyone can hold free and fair election without some thing as basic as that!
In Kenya..on a state visit last week President President Joao Lourenco answered a question from our Correspondent in Nairobi Kenya on Zimbabwe elections. He was asked if ever the SADC Extraordinary Summit of Heads of States and Governments on Zimbabwe would happen.
ReplyDeleteHe, through a translator, said: "Elections in Zimbabwe happened. They did not go well. Some prefer to keep quiet. But deep down we know what happened.”
Now compare that to what you may have heard... the "congratulatory message”!
Our Sources within SADC say SADC will propose a TRANSITIONAL AUTHORITY to lead Zimbabwe into Fresh ELECTIONS... more like exactly what Nelson Chamisa and the CCC demanded through SADC. When SADC asked ZANU PF to respond to this demand by the CCC Zanu PF failed to state why this demand was not a perfect resolution to the political impasse in Zimbabwe.
Everyone knows that SADC leaders are corrupt and incompetent and it is no secret that SA’s ANC government is hell bent on making sure there is no regime change in Zimbabwe. ANC will bully everyone to have their wish!
A National transition Authority comprising Zanu PF and CCC would be a waste of time. The leaders were in the last GNU that failed to implement even one reform, it is naive to expect them to do any better!
What Zimbabwe needs is a NTA comprising of technocrats who will implement ALL the democratic reforms without failure. Zanu PF and CCC got the nation into this mess, they are the problem and cannot be the solution too!
Forget President Lourenco, of Angola, diplomatic language praising Mnangagwa for the "exemplary 2023 elections Zanu PF is not off the hook! SADC Summit is yet to decide on the damning election report.
ReplyDeleteDenying Zanu PF and its CCC side-kick legitimacy is still on the card. And the best solution is a National Transition Authority in which neither of these two parties play a party. They are ones who dragged us into this mess, they are the problem, and cannot be the solution too!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyM4rrMw2io
@ Bullet Train
ReplyDelete“Why pushing others to do the strenuous work for you and you yourself are able-bodied? Liberate yourself! Always good at blaming others when you can't even swat a fly, that's unforgivable and outrageous!”
Here we go again! Is it just Chamisa, your infallible demigod, who must not be held to democratic account or is it every public office bearer?
Well in a democracy, we are hoping to build a heathy democratic Zimbabwe, then all those holding public office are accountable to the public. The people of Zimbabwe have risked life and limb to elect MDC/CCC leaders for one primary task - to bring about the democratic changes necessary to end the Zanu PF dictatorship.
After 23 years, including 5 in the GNU, they have failed to carry out even one token reform. Not even one. Of course, they must be held to account for that betray. They must account for their failure, that is not negotiable, and you must get that one into you thick head!
Holding leaders to account is much more important than swatting house flies. It demands a informed and diligent voters and a village idiots who thinks a mere mortal is a demigod!
Of course, it is tragic that we still have people like you with the Chris Mutsvangwa mentality who still believe that leaders are demigods who are not accountable to any mere mortal. No wonder Zimbabwe is a failed state, we have buffoon in power and village idiots keeping them in power!
We, Zimbabweans, should be saying what we want to happen next. Fresh elections supervised by SADC in 3or 6 months, another GNU, a NTA with 1/3 Zanu PF 1/3 CCC and 1/3 technocrats or a NTA of technocrats only? The silence is deafening - proof we don't know what we want!
ReplyDeleteSo what was it I said you did not like? Of course you cannot answer that because it was all way above your intellectual capacity! You accept everything Chamisa says, no questions asked, and binning everything anyone else says especially if questions Chamisa!
ReplyDeleteDon’t pretend you could follow any in that video. You are used to the usual empty slogans and swallow such Chamisa nonsense as closing all the vote rigging loop-holes. No wonder the country is in a mess we have more more than our fair share of mentally retarded idiots masquerading as geniuses!
Bullet Train
ReplyDelete“Ndati iwe uri kuitei unongochovhera vamwe? Chamisa is doing what he considers best. Kana iwe uchiona achipotsa pindawo munhandare macho uite zvinobvisa Zanu yacho. Kwete kuita noise wakagara kuma grandstand/grandstairs/terraces uko. You're polluting us with your irritating and unnecessary noise. If you're a genuine Zimbabwean join the struggle, market your strategies, and if they're profound we will backup you.... or forever shut up if you have no alternative plan to unseat Zanu Pf because uchazvimba mapapu nekungoti CCC this, CCC that. Foma yako DDD or ZZZ tiuyeko kana yakarongeka. Dai kutaura kwaunoita pano iriyo action yaunoita pamwe takatosununguka kare. But eish..... too much pamuromo, but action dololo.”
Get this simple truth into you thick head (I am here to hammer it in): all who hold public office must be democratic accountable to the public. No one forced Chamisa to go into politics and hold public office. No one! Whilst in public office he was paid using public funds and so the people have the right to know what he was doing.
Chamisa and his MDC friends were elected to implement the democratic changes necessary to end the Zanu PF dictatorship. After 23 years, including 5 in the GNU, they have failed to get even one reform implemented. Only some one with no clue what MDC/CCC were elected to do would say Chamisa is “doing his best!”
What is particularly nauseating about dimwits like you is you not only have no clue what is going on but worse still you want to silence those who KNOW what is going on and thus allow those in power to do as they damn well please destroying the very basis of good governance.
MDC/CCC have not only given up implementing reforms and delivering free elections, they have been participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy out of greed. They conned dimwits like you to participate time and time by promising to win rigged elections and you, in your stupidity have believed the nonsense and thus helped perpetuate the dictatorship!
Chamisa and company having been running with povo by day and hunting with the Zanu PF hounds by night ever since the GNU and you are just too stupid to notice it! “Join the struggle!” Fcuk me! What will it take to get you to finally open your eyes!
@ LGC
ReplyDelete“Aiwa, accept Chamisa to be critiqued. This business of getting annoyed when Chamisa is critiqued is very wrong. He is not a demigod . He is leading a political institution so his decisions must be cross examined . Not zvekuti when people ask for accountability mobvunza kuti hanzi "ko iwewe uri kuitei" ? By virtue of his position Chamisa opened himself to scrutiny on his leadership skills, techniques and abilities. In much the same vain as we scrutinize ED decisions. No leader should be immune to assessment. We don't want to breed another Mugabe whose followers blindly followed like sheep to the slaughter.”
What is worse it these people are treating Chamisa like a demigod when the he is not only human but one with a mountain of evidence to prove he is corrupt and breathtakingly incompetent. How anyone would still treat him as an infallible demigod goes to show just how shallow, thick and slow the individual must be.
We should not be arguing about the need for public officials being accountable, that should go without saying. We should be arguing about ideas and policies details, etc. Not so in Zimbabwe!
With so many of our people this shallow, thick and slow; it is little wonder the country is in real mess. Worst of all, unless we pull up our socks, we are doomed!
@ Air Force One
ReplyDelete“Kwanzi zvachamisa manotes ecritique yake mune module racho ipapo bhoe chitipai yenyu party ine muono ine vision strategy and structures tiitevere taneta everyday chamisa this or that.”
In other words you cannot judge Chamisa’s treasonous betrayal during the 2008 to 2013 GNU by failing to implement even one reform, for example, because there is no other alternative party to compare it with? The more rational explanation is that you did not know what the reforms are much less how they were to be implemented. You cannot accuse MDC leaders of failing to implement something you do not know!
Chamisa does not have a vision, strategy, etc. and is blundering from pillar to post; but that is fine with you because you would not know what a vision is and would be lost if things worked! If you had the choice between the Albert Einstein of political administration, Chamisa or Mnangagwa; I bet you will pick Chamisa or Mnangagwa because you relate to chaos more than you relate to reason!
@ Mbofana
ReplyDelete“I made it very clear that this was merely a 'gentlemen's club' of predominantly like-minded leaders who would never condemn one another over such things as rigged and fraudulent electoral processes.
It is always so energy-sucking and exasperating whenever I witness Zimbabweans still harbouring some self-deceiving hopes in SADC coming out with a resolution that risks a direct confrontation with their allies in ZANU PF.
That is why I initially had resolved never to write about this election issue again - as I had grown weary and given up on ever getting through to my fellow compatriots.”
Well you have every right to be disappointed with Zimbabweans, we are our own worst enemy. We not only messed up the opportunity to implement the democratic reforms during the 2008 to 2013 GNU but, worst of all, we learned nothing from that blunder.
Many Zimbabweans are not aware that MDC/CCC sold out big time during the GNU and so they will want a new GNU with the same failed leaders - Zanu PF and CCC in charge. Of course, it is dum because the nation would be luck if a handful of reforms are implemented! Nothing short of ALL the reforms being implemented will do this time because we may not get another chance!