THe MDC Alliance has resorted to dirty tactics of littering the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) with frivolous court applications,
despite successfully contributing in recent amendments to the Electoral
Act which brought the changes they are now contesting, The Herald has
learnt.
It emerged yesterday that the two MDCs led by Mr Nelson Chamisa and
Professor Welshman Ncube successfully caused changes to more than 10
Sections of the Electoral Act, some of which they are now exerting
pressure on ZEC to disregard.
President Mnangagwa signed the Electoral Amendment Act on May 28 this year.
MDC-T chief whip Mr Innocent Gonese and MDC-N’s then representative
Ms Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga made extensive contributions which
saw a lot of sections being amended in the Act.
The pair was instrumental in the amendment of Section 4 of the
electoral law, with Mr Gonese taking a leading role in changes made to
sections 18, 20, 21, 35, 40, 56, 59 and 133.
The whole of section 171 was amended at the behest of Mr Gonese.
Mr Gonese, for instance, pushed for the insertion of sub-section 4(a)
which confirms the independence of ZEC by giving the electoral body the
leeway to prepare and keep the voters’ roll.
The amendment reads: “4(a) The Commission my prepare and maintain, in
printed or electronic form, and a consolidated national voters roll and
a consolidated voters roll for any constituency or ward . . .”
MDC Alliance has been accused of interfering by such powers vested in
ZEC by the Electoral Amendment Act through demands meant to take away
the powers vested in the electoral body to be the custodian of the
voters roll.
Observers have said it is surprising that some of the so-called
electoral demands being raised by MDC Alliance against ZEC were arising
from the amendments which the opposition parties themselves sponsored.
Tuesday 19 June 2018
MDC SWAMPING ZEC WITH FRIVOLOUS COURT CASES
Sources yesterday said the MDC Alliance, in a bid to stop
the July 30 harmonised elections in fear of defeat, was now littering ZEC with
several writs in a bid to paralyse the independent electoral body.
The plot, which involves Veritas, a non-governmental
organisation, is a well calculated bid by the alliance to find a dignified way
of pulling out of the polls.
The new tact is a departure from ‘rolling demonstrations’
which the alliance had initially proposed.
Sources said the pact, led by Mr Chamisa, had realised that
demonstrations put them on the wrong side of the law, as they would be
construed as seeking to overrun ZEC, a constitutional body which they created.
“Their new approach is now to clutter ZEC with writs so
that they use the court system to paralyse the independent electoral body,”
said one source.
“What this does is it allows them to push for their
non-legal objectives through what appears like a legal route. To enhance
deniability in the event of a setback or heavy criticism, as indeed happened
after their demonstrations, they have decided to use a vehicle called Veritas,
which in reality is MDC Alliance incognito. But the overall objective is to opt
out of the electoral process while keeping a dignified face.”
The alliance is also reportedly counting on two reports
produced by a group of American researchers from Centre for Global Development
(CGD) calling on President Mnangagwa to use his powers to write a new electoral
law.
The reports, one which has been given to the Zimbabwean
embassy in Washington, garbles MDC arguments without even testing them against
the legal framework that governs elections in Zimbabwe.
The activist researchers were led by Mr Tedd Moss and one
Alexander Noyes, two activists who have been on an anti-Zanu-PF drive since
2013.
“The two came as so called experts on Zimbabwe,
underpinning a group of ex-American ambassadors who were in the country
recently,” said another source.
“This group has since produced two reports one of which was
given to the Zimbabwean embassy in Washington and another presented to some
American civil society group. Interestingly, both submissions garbled the MDC
arguments without even testing these against the legal framework that governs
elections in this country.
“Even more absurdly, the reports talk about 99-year leases
on land as if these have any bearing on the electoral process and then in the
end, the report calls on the President to act on ZEC or to use presidential
powers to write a new electoral law.”
The source added: ‘’It’s a blatant instigation on the
President to act in a lawless manner for as long as such an action favours
American interests or interests of their protégés as interpreted by these two
researchers. ZEC is insulated against undue influence from any quarter, whether
individual or institutional.
“It is a creature of the Constitution. Law making is a
prerogative of Parliament which in any case has discharged its responsibility
by creating the Electoral Act in the first place and then amending it at the
behest of the opposition. It thus makes no sense to ask the President to use
his powers to overwrite laws he has assented to, only about 10 working days
ago.
“What this all shows is a less balanced assessment of the
electoral environment and more a bias and affinity for the opposition. Even
more worrisome is the conclusion of the report which categorically states that
elections will not be free and fair and this on an extra-judicial premise.”
Messrs Moss and Noyes have been trying to work against
Zanu-PF in the past years under British think tanks.
“Now that the British establishment has a different
attitude towards Zimbabwe, these two activist scholars have decided to cross
the Atlantic to find succour to their anti-Zanu-PF politics within the American
establishment,” said the source. Herald
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