Zec has been at pains to explain discrepancies uncovered in
the voters roll and has dismissed the document as fake and tampered with to
discredit the electoral body.
The elections body has also accused politicians of causing
confusion by signing affidavits with fake addresses for their supporters for
use in voter registration.
Zec has also threatened to sue pressure groups, data
activists and other stakeholders for publicising alleged discrepancies with
registrants’ particulars arguing this posed a security risk.
Zec chairperson Priscilla Chigumba has been accused of
fuelling the confusion after she claimed that the elections management body was
only accountable to Parliament.
Moyo said Zec’s defensive approach to criticism must invite
lawsuits from the public and other stakeholders to ensure transparency and to safeguard the credibility of the March 26
by-elections.
“It is very clear that Zec, through its chairperson
Chigumba and its chief elections officer Utoile Silaigwana, is contemptuous of
voters and prospective voters; and the time has come for voters and prospective
voters to hit ZEC very hard with lawsuits from left, right and centre,” Moyo
said in an interview with The Standard.
“That is what now needs to be done, by voters and
prospective voters. Zec must be sued like hell.
“Civil society and other well-wishers, who want to see free
and fair elections in Zimbabwe, must brace themselves and get ready to assist
voters and prospective voters to support public interest litigation by voters
and prospective voters.”
Some of the discrepancies uncovered include the movement of
over 170 000 registered voters from their constituencies.
Independent election watchdog, the Zimbabwe Election
Support Network (Zesn) urged Zec to subject the voters’ roll to independent
data experts to allay the confusion and safeguard the credibility of the
elections.
“Otherwise, Zec is accountable to the public; that is why
section 233 (d) of the constitution requires Zec, and indeed all Commissions,
“to promote transparency and accountability” as a public institution.
“Zec is required by the constitution to do this, that is to
promote transparency and accountability, as an independent body which is not
subject to the direction or indirect control of anyone, not even Parliament,”
Moyo added.
“So, it is very clear that as an independent constitutional
body in a constitutional democracy, Zec is without any doubt accountable to the
public in accordance with the law.
“That is the essence of a constitutional democracy, full
stop.
“There is absolutely no way that an electoral body
operating outside the law can ensure the conduct of elections and referendums
that are efficient, free, fair and transparent in accordance with the law.
“It is for this reason that the current Zec commissioners
and senior managers must be disbanded and replaced.”
Zec has in the past dismissed accusations that it rigs
elections on behalf of the ruling Zanu PF party.
Zimbabwe’s last major elections in 2018 were disputed and
Zec was largely blamed for the chaos. Standard
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