ALLIANCE for the People’s Agenda (APA) president Nkosana
Moyo says he is inundated with requests for beer and T-shirts every time he
meets the electorate on the campaign trail countrywide as they want “to turn
elections into a transaction”.
In a discussion with approximately 15 people at the
Masvingo Civic Centre yesterday, he was quick to say that he has never given in
to such demands.
“Everywhere I go, people ask me to buy them beer and give
them T-shirts. But I do not buy them. I explain to them politely that this has
partly destroyed our country. They turn elections into a transaction. They are
doing themselves a service by securing the future of the country and their
children in the best hands, they are not doing me a favour.
“When a candidate is campaigning and they are buying people
things, where are they getting the money? Afterwards you complain about
corruption, when you have started it from day one when you start an interaction
with candidates which leads to corrupt practises,” he said.
Asked about his chances in the elections where 22 other
candidates are vying for the presidency, Moyo, a businessman and former Cabinet
minister who has held several positions in multilateral institutions, chose to
be diplomatic.
“About me winning . . . the answer does not come from me.
It lies with the Zimbabweans who I give that process, otherwise I will be
involved in conflict of interest since I am one of the candidates . . . but if
people follow my ways of how to choose a leader, I will win.
“People need to know what went wrong. People should look
for the right person to fix things. What is wrong is the economy. Out of the 23
candidates, people should choose who is best to fix it. It needs a person who
is good at the job. People should choose themselves the best candidate from the
23 contestants. They should look at our CVs, experience, track record so that
they choose well.
So if the people follow what I am saying, I do not have any
no competition. That is how I see it,” he said
Moyo said the electoral playing field is tilted in Zanu
PF’s favour.
“All our State institutions, not just the Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission (Zec), are appendages of Zanu PF. Zec is an arm of Zanu
PF, whether we like it or not. The chairperson of Zec was appointed by the
president, not by an independent panel that represents the interests of the
people.
“What we need is for our institutions of State to be guided
by the Constitution and they should understand that they stand above all
political parties and protect the interests of Zimbabwean citizens not those of
political parties,” he said. Newsday
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