THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has appointed Utoile Silaigwana as its substantive chief elections officer (CEO).
Silaigwana, who has been the target for vilification by
opposition parties for his perceived inclination towards the ruling Zanu PF
party, has been acting CEO since the departure of Constance Chigwamba in March
2018.
Zec chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba announced
Silaigwana’s promotion in a statement yesterday.
“Zec is pleased to announce that it has appointed Mr Utoile
Silaigwana substantive chief elections officer with effect from July 1, 2019,”
Chigumba said.
According to the country’s labour laws, this effectively
means Silaigwana is owed huge amounts of money by the quasi-governmental entity
because his appointment is backdated to two years.
The retired army officer has a long history of running
contested elections in the country since the era of the late former President
Robert Mugabe.
But Chigumba, nevertheless, waxed lyrical about
Silaigwana’s appointment.
“Mr Silaigwana has 17 years experience in elections
management, having served in the Electoral Supervisory Commission between 2002
and 2005 as a provincial co-ordinator. He rose through the ranks to become the
deputy chief elections officer in charge of civic and voter education between
2003 and 2004,” Chigumba said.
At the inception of Zec in 2005, Silaigwana was seconded
from the army to serve as director for voter education and public relations. He
was appointed deputy chief elections officer in charge of operations in 2007.
Newsday
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