Until Zanu PF amends constitution to postpose 2028, subject is mumbo jumbo; Chapungu focus free election guarantee. W Mukori

 Zimbabwe has many economic, social and political problems to be dealing with. The country is a failed state for Pete’s sake. So why is parliament wasting time, energy and God only knows the amount of human and material resource debating a constitutional amendment to postpone 2028 elections. 

One of key demands in the fight to end white colonial oppression was the right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country encapsulate in the demand “One man, one vote!” Blacks did not have a vote! 

Zimbabweans have yet to participate in a truly free, fair and credible election, Zanu PF has devised many ways to short changed the people and deny them a free vote. In 1980, in the country’s first elections, the people were warned that if the party does not win the the election. 

Of course, the people voted to end the war and out went their hopes and dreams of a free vote. As soon as Zanu PF got into power the regime corrupted the state institutions to create a de facto one-party and consolidate it satanic grip on power. 

Mnangagwa blatantly rigged the 2023 elections but getting away with it proved near impossible particular after both SADC and AU election observers condemned the process as flawed and illegal. He is worried that Zanu PF may not get away with rigged elections in future and hence the frantic activity to amend the constitution and do away with elections altogether.

We started with fighting for the right to vote, “One man, one vote!” After independence in 1980 the people found their vote had been holed out, they could only vote for Zanu PF. And now the regime is proposing taking away even the holed-out vote. We have come full circle to where we start before independence. We have no vote!

However until the regime was passed the amendment to postpone the 2028 elections and acted on it by actually postponing the elections we would be better advised focusing on making sure 2028 elections are free, fair and credible or Zanu PF does not get political legitimacy. Professor Jonathan Moyo explains why it is folly to be excited about the proposal to postpone the election.

“It is an oxymoron, that is a contradiction in terms, to claim or to assert that the so-called 2030 proposal to amend the Constitution of Zimbabwe allegedly being mooted by some sections of the governing ZanuPF is unconstitutional,” Professor Moyo explained.

“A proposal to amend the constitution is just that; a proposal, nothing less and nothing more. It is not a crime or a civic wrong for anyone to want or to seek to amend the Constitution of Zimbabwe.  A constitutional proposal cannot be unconstitutional.

“Accordingly, it is important to understand and appreciate that, as a matter of fact, there is no democratic constitution anywhere in the world, which cannot be amended. All such constitutions have very clear and precise provisions for their amendment.

“In this connection, all that matters is that proposals to amend the Constitution of Zimbabwe must be done and must proceed in terms of section 328 of the Constitution, as read with section 131. That is all. The rest is mumbo jumbo.”

So if push came to shove, there will be nothing “unconstitutional” about postponing 2028 elections if the right procedures laid out in the 2013 Zimbabwe Constitution were followed. The very fact that such an amendment with far reaching implications on the democratic rights of the citizens can be easily passed is a measure of just how weak and feeble the 2013 Zimbabwe Constitution is. 

A weak and feeble constitution produces equally weak and feeble institution such as ZEC, Police, judiciary, media, parliament, etc. Mnangagwa is able to do as he damn well please precisely because we have weak and feeble State and public institutions.  

The real oxymorons are the one arguing the people be denied their right to hold those in public office to account, the very essence of democracy and good governance, “to give Mnangagwa more time to finish the development projects he is working on”.

What development projects are they wittering about? Zimbabwe is a failed state precisely because the nation has been stuck with this corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship for 45 years and counting because Zanu PF rigged the elections. 

And look how is wittering the same buffoons who have landed the nation into the economic and political mess. Of course, they are not interested in the nation’s development but rather the chance to continue looting!  

Even if the economy was thriving, it would be very foolish for the people to give up their only control over those in power because having given up that power they may never ever get it back. Never ever! 

Still, the most important point Professor Moyo has made is that there is very little the nation can ever accomplish engaging the regime until there is an approved amendment to the constitution to postpone elections and the regime has acted on the amendment. Until then the nation must assume the 2028 elections will go ahead. 

The nation must Bateleur Eagle (Chapungu) focus on the following four points:

1. 1) all democratic reforms must be implemented to ensure free, fair and credible elections and end a repeat of rigged election of the past.

1. 2) if no meaningful reforms are implement all hands on deck to stop Nelson Chamisa and company conning Zimbabweans into participating in their millions on the basis of another idiotic lie only to give Zanu PF legitimacy and perpetuate the people’s suffering. 

1. 3) Zanu PF would want to push postponing of the 2028 elections making is appear as it is a certainty for the purpose of making the nation panic and draw their attention away the two above tasks. We must not allow ourselves to be caught off guard chasing the postpone 2028 mist, “mumbo jumbo”, as Professor Moyo called it.

1. 4) We demand the rule of law and the guaranteed right of all citizens to a meaning “One man, one vote!” We demand the full implementation of all the democratic reforms to guarantee free and fair elections and democratic rule. No one should ever be above the law ever again.

If Mnangagwa postpone 2028 elections he will be usurping the people's right to a meaningful vote and that is high treason. Period! W Mukori

 Zanu PF has always wanted to impose a de jure one-party state in independent Zimbabwe, the party’s prize for spear heading the liberation war. Mnangagwa is hell bent on getting his wish. Or is he!

Zapu and Zanu, the two parties with freedom fighters on the ground, were rivals ever since the break away of some leaders from Zapu to form Zanu in the 1960s. The rivalry was so intense that bilious scuffles between their overzealous members were very common. The ordinary people, povo, were forced to have fully paid membership cards of both Zanu and Zapu for their own safety, ease money for the leaders! 

There are many stories of the armed freedom fighters of the two parties fighting and killing each other before and after independence.

There have been several attempts reconcile and unit the two parties to facilitate the one-party state ambition. They attended the 1979 Lancaster House Talks as one party, Patriotic Front (PF), although it was clear this unity was not going to last. It did not last; the two contested the 1980 elections as  PF Zapu led by Dr Joshua Nkomo and Zanu PF led by Robert Mugabe.

In the 1980 elections Zanu PF deployed many of its freedom fighters, contrary to the Lancaster House agreement to have them withdrawn into assembly points, and their campaign message was that if Zanu PF did not win the elections the bush war would continue. 

Of course, the people voted to end the bush war or so they thought. Three years after independence the nation was back on a war footing as Mugabe sort to consolidate his grip on power. 

The 1983 to 1987 Gukurahundi massacre, massacre of 20 000 PF Zapu supporters including unarmed civilians, was Robert Mugabe brow beating his PF Zapu rivals into submission. The massacre stopped with the signing the 1987 Unity Accord in which the two parties merged to form Zanu PF; paving the way for the imposition of the de facto one-party dictatorship that has ruled Zimbabwe to this day.

Zanu PF has rigged elections to remain in office these last 44 years under the pretext that all attempts at regime change were inspired by foreigners and threatened the nation’s hard-won independence, peace, unity and development. Bulls***t! Four decades of gross mismanagement, rampant corruption and tyrannical oppression have left the country in economic ruins and political paralysis. 

The nation’s attempt to elect opposition leaders who would implement the democratic reforms and thus end the Zanu PF dictatorship have come to naught. MDC/CCC leaders have failed to implement even one token reform in 24 years, including 5 GNU years when they had the golden opportunity to do so. 

Zanu PF has bribed the MDC/CCC leaders with the trappings of high office and, in return, they have not only forgotten about the reforms but have connived to keep the regime in power for a share of the spoils of power. 

Indeed, MDC/CCC leaders are cooperating fully with Zanu PF in usurping the people’s right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country. The people risk all to vote them into office to restore the people’s rights not to abolish them. Talk of being betrayed by a friend with a kiss!

Zimbabwe’s worsening economic situation, millions are living in abject poverty, is making the people restless for meaningful political and economic change. There is growing pressure to implement reforms and restore the people’s right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country. Mnangagwa is felling this pressure and his response is take away the people’s right to regular elections, rigged or otherwise! 

Rigging elections is bad enough postponing and cancelling elections is another kettle of fish! After a life-time of crossing the double yellow line by rigging elections Mnangagwa is now going for the biggie crossing the double red-lines by taking away the people’s right to vote. 

Zimbabwe is a failed state because Zanu PF has rigged elections to impose the corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical regime on the nation. This has cause tragic human suffering and social and political instability. Taking away the people’s right to vote will only sink the nation into even deeper economic trouble and political instability. No one should ever be allowed to drag the nation into such a mess for selfish reason. No one!

Postponing and/or cancelling the 2028 elections will be high treason. Period! It would be unforgivable for this generation was to allow those responsible for such a heinous act get away with it setting a dangerous precedence!

It is very likely that Zanu PF will push hard the threat to postpone 2028 elections only to drop the idea the last minute as a magnanimous concession and hold the 2028 elections with no reforms implemented, which is what the regime was planning to do all along. Watch out!

Zimbabweans must maintain the pressure demanding free and fair elections and an end to the curse of rigged elections and bad governance. After 44 years of rigged elections and bad governance Zimbabwe cannot afford Zanu PF rigging 2028 elections and getting away with it! 

"There is no political friction between Zanu PF and CCC!" boasted Mnangagwa. But of course, "vakadzidza kudya vanyerere!" W Mukori

 “In Zimbabwe there is no friction between Zanu PF and the opposition party!” Mnangagwa boasted at the festive party held at his Kwe kwe farm to celebrate that Zanu PF and CCC opposition MPs had agreed to postpone the 2028 harmonised elections. 

Of course, there is no friction between Zanu PF and this surrogate MDC/CCC opposition after all the later is Zanu PF team B in all but name! 

The people of Zimbabwe have risked all to elect MDC/CCC leaders into power on the understanding that these leaders will carry out the A1 task: IMPLEMENT ALL THE NECESSARY DEMOCRATIC CHANGES TO END ZANU PF’S DICTATORIAL POWERS INCLUDING THE POWERS TO RIG ELECTIONS. 

Morgan Tsvangirai and company have failed to implement even one token reform in 24 years including the 5 years in the 2008 to 2013 GNU. Mugabe bribed the MDC leaders with the trappings of high office; the E-class Mercedes Benz ministerial limos, the very generous salaries and allowances, the US$4 million mansion for Save himself, etc., etc. With their snouts in the feeding trough, MDC leaders forgot about implementing reforms. 

“Mazivanhu eMDC adzidza kudya anyerere!” boasted Zanu PF cronies during the GNU when asked why MDC leaders were not implementing the democratic reforms. 

Ever since the GNU debacle MDC leaders have given up on implementing the democratic reforms in favour of participating in the flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy in return for a share of the spoils of power. 

Mnangagwa has appreciated this deceptive new role of the opposition and has carried on with what Mugabe did during the GNU - reward the opposition by allowing them to win a few gravy train seats. In 2018 he went one step more and created Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD), a super numeral body gathering all the opposition leaders who participated in the flawed 2018 elections who publicly endorsed the lie the elections were free and fair and thus endorsed Mnangagwa as the legitimately elected president. The POLAD members were rewarded with perks including diplomatic passports and a new US$ 60 000 twin-cab truck each. 

Mnangagwa was forced to introduce a US$20 000 nomination fee for presidential candidates in the 2023 elections to stern the flood of presidential candidates eyeing the POLAD benefits. It worked; many would be candidates failed to raise the fee and dropped out!

Whether the people of Zimbabwe realise it or not, the truth is MDC/CCC leaders have been corrupted by Zanu PF, “vakadzidza kudya vanyerere”, they will never ever implement any meaningful democratic changes to end the Zanu PF dictatorship. Never ever! 

What Mnangagwa did at his farm in Kwe Kwe over the weekend was to throw a big party to celebrated that MDC/CCC is Zanu PF team B in all but name! 

The announcement should not come as a surprise, the writing has been on the wall for decades. When MDC leaders failed to implement even one token reform during the GNU the message that the opposition were no longer working for the people but Zanu PF lite up like neon lights! 

Zanu PF has rigged elections for 44 years, the last 24 years of which with the active connivence of MDC/CCC. Zimbabwe is a failed state because the nation has been stuck with this corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship for 44 years and counting. Zimbabweans cannot afford to let Zanu PF rig the 2028 elections and thus perpetuate the dictatorship and failed state. 

We cannot afford to ignore that Chamisa & Co. are Zanu PF team B who will con their supporters to participate in the flawed 2028 elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and perpetuate the dictatorship!

Visit by my "nemesis Mnangagwa and Chiwega will be the story of my life." posted Chamisa on X. Why nemesis! W Mukori

 “This visit by my nemesis ED and General Chiwenga and the dynamics around it will feature prominently in the story of my life.” Posted Chamisa on X accompanied by a video of motorcade of the two arriving for the visit.

This is rich! Why is Chamisa calling Mnangagwa and Chiwenga his nemesis! Nemesis means “formidable and usually victorious rival or opponent”. Yes Zanu PF has been victorious in all elections ever since MDC’s launch in 1999 but not because the party was “formidable”. Far from it!

In 2008 Professor Jonathan Moyo said “Mugabe would lose the presidential race to a donkey if (big IF) the elections were free, fair and credible!” underlining just how weak and feeble Zanu PF was. The people of Zimbabwe were so desperate to remove Zanu PF from office they did not care whom the voted for as long as the vote will remove Zanu PF from power. 

It so happened that SADC leaders had piled a lot of, behind the scene,  pressure on Zanu PF to accept a number of electoral reforms for the 2008 elections. For example, all vote counting was to be carried out at the Polling Station and a copy of the results, the V11 form, giving to each election agent and posted for the public to see.

In the past, ballots were collected to designated locations were the counting was carried out. There were reports of ballot boxes disappearing, unknown boxes being added, etc., etc. 

The March 2008 vote was the nearest Zimbabwe got to holding free, fair and credible elections! 

When it became increasingly clear that Zanu PF was heading for a resounding electoral defeat. Mnangagwa stepped in to stop ZEC announcing the results. What followed was a six weeks long recounting and drip, drip announcing of the results. In parliament, the opposition won the cooked up vote recount with  narrow majority. 

In the presidential race, Morgan Tsvangirai’s 73% votes, according to Mugabe’s own Freudian slip, was whittled down to 47%; enough to force  run-off.

Mnangagwa and his Joint Operation Command (JOC) cronies, a junta comprising the top brass in the Army, Police, CIO and Prison Services headed by Mugabe and Mnangagwa, launched a military style Operation Mavhotera Papi during the run-off. The primary purpose of the operation was to punish the people for having rejected Zanu PF in the March 2008 vote and make sure they do not do it again in the run-off and in future. The nation witnessed the worst ever elections related violence. 

Millions of Zimbabweans went into hiding or were internally displaced, hundreds of thousands were beaten and/or raped and over 500 were murdered by the Zanu PF Youth militia and war veterans, who were Operation Mavhotera Papi’s foot soldiers. The heavy duty work of abducting and killing was carried by the four security services branches personal deployed by JOC. 

“What was achieved by the bullet cannot be change by ballots!” thundered Robert Mugabe at one of the Zanu PF rallies during the run-off. The party’s operatives heard him and were merciless. 

There is a video evidence of Mnangagwa boasting of his role in the 2008 electoral coup to deny Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends electoral victory. “Baba gatsirai cabinet, musafunga zvimwe!” he told Mugabe. He was cocksure he would overturn Zanu PF and Mugabe’s resounding defeat in the March 2008 vote! 

Tsvangirai withdraw from the run-off. “Zanu PF has declared war on the people!” he explained.

Mugabe went on to win the one-horse race with 84% of the votes. Up from 23% in the March 2008 vote.

Both SADC and AU refused to recognise Mugabe’s victory given the blatant cheating in the March vote count and the wanton violence in the run-off. SADC forced Mugabe to accept the formation of the 2008 to 2013 Government of National Unity (GNU). The primary purpose of the GNU was to implement the democratic reforms to ensure the blatant cheating and/or wanton violence of 2008 are never ever repeated ever again.

Mugabe bribed Tsvangirai and company with the trappings of high office; the E-Class Mercedes Benz limos, the generous salaries and allowances, a US$4 million mansion for Save himself, etc. In return, the MDC leaders forgot about implementing reforms. Not even one token reform was implemented in the 5 years of the GNU when MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to do so.

“Mazivanhu eMDC dzidza kudya anyerere!” boasted Zanu PF cronies during the GNU years when asked why MDC leaders were not implementing any reforms. 

Ever since the GNU debacle, MDC/CCC leaders have participated in flawed elections knowing fully well that Zanu PF was rigging the elections and that participating would only give Zanu PF legitimacy. 

“I have plugged all the vote rigging loop holes. #Godisinit!” Chamisa lied to his followers in the 2023 elections to con them to participate in their millions to give Zanu PF legitimacy. 

Of course, Chamisa lied! He known the voters’ roll was in shambles and ZEC had not produced even something as basic as a verified voters roll. He did not deploy election agents at many of the Polling Stations even though he had the funds to pay them. 

Chamisa not only KNEW that Zanu PF was rigging the elections, LIED that he  “plugged the vote rigging loop holes”, he even evoke the name of God is his blatant lies, he even ASSISTED Zanu PF rig the elections by making sure there were no CCC agents to witness the counting of the votes! 

Team Pachedu, a group of voters’ roll specialists who embedded themselves in the 2023 elections, reported that there were as many as 1 000 Polling Stations, or 10% of the total, for which they had failed to get corresponding voters’ rolls. They had a V11 from one of these ghost Polling Stations, with 999 votes cast for Mnangagwa and 0 for Chamisa. It should be noted that none of the Polling Stations for which there were voters’ rolls had more than 500 registered voters - the ghost Station had double the number of registered voters and 100% voter turnout! 

Some people have said MDC/CCC is Zanu PF team B in all but name - playing to secure team A electoral victory and political legitimacy. They are right!

Without Chamisa Mnangagwa and Zanu PF would have lost the elections and/or political legitimacy in 2013, at the latest! 

Mnangagwa Chamisa’s nemesis! Yeah right! This is all a class act!

Mnangagwa and Chamisa are like cats, many have misread the grovelling and paw swipe for fighting. It is only when they see the kittens that they realise, they were wrong!

Postponing 2028 to 2030 is even tougher than Mnangagwa stay beyond 2028. So why is Zanu PF "flying" a lead balloon! W Mukori

 “THE country’s main opposition party, CCC, is in agreement with a resolution by the ruling Zanu PF party to postpone the next harmonised elections from 2028 to 2030 to allow developmental projects initiated by President  

@edmnangagwa to come to fruition.” posted Nick Mangwana on X.

This is a lead balloon that will never ever fly! 

As President of Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa swore to uphold the nation’s constitution, the nation’s highest law, and the constitution is clear that the mandate to govern derived from the people by winning the majority votes in a free, fair and credible elections and that mandate is for a fixed period of five years. 

It is not for the president and/or parliament to usurp the people’s power elect and thus give a new mandate to whosoever they want to be their representatives in at the end of this parliamentary session. 

Dictators have no respect of the constitution, the law and rule of law and Zanu PF and Mnangagwa, in particular, has shown this contempt of the law and the people’s rights repeatedly in the last 44 years. Zanu PF has never ever held free, fair and credible elections since the country’s independence in 1980. 

When it was clear Zanu PF was going to lose the March 2008 vote, Mnangagwa stepped in to blatantly cheat the vote count to force a presidential run-off. 

Mnangagwa and his Joint Operation Command (JOC) cronies, a junta comprising top brass in the Army, Police, CIO and Prison Services head by Mugabe and Mnangagwa, launched the military style Operation Mavhotera Papi, in which Zimbabweans were punished for having rejected Zanu PF in the March vote. Millions were internally displaced, hundreds of thousands were beaten and/or raped and over 500 were murdered in the wanton violence of the run-off. 

“What was won by the bullet cannot be changed by the ballot!” Mugabe cheered the Zanu PF militia and war veterans, who were the foot soldiers in the operation, and the personal from all the four security services sectors  who carried out the heavy duty work of coordinating, abducting and killing. Mugabe got 84% of the vote in the run-off, up from 23% in March!

Mnangagwa was behind the November 2017 military coup that booted Mugabe out of office. The coup was “lawful, justified and constitutional” Judge George Chiweshe announced. He could not name the chapter and verse in the constitution allowing the coup because there is no such clause!

Following the November 2017 military coup Mnangagwa promised to hold free, fair and credible elections. No one was really surprise that he did not honour that promise and blatantly rigged the 2018 and 2023 elections. 

Both SADC and AU election observers condemned 2023 elections as flawed and illegal and so Mnangagwa and his regime are illegitimate. SADC and AU did not take the logical step of deny the regime political legitimacy only because Chamisa and his supporters participated in the flawed elections in their millions.  

Make no mistake about it Mnangagwa would like to extend his stay in office by hook and by crook and there are two main huddles in his way:

1. 1) Zanu PF will never win free, fair and credible elections and he knows that he would have to rig the 2028 elections. He has rigged elections in the past, so that should be ease. It is not! In 2023 Chamisa lied about plugging all vote rigging loop holes to con his followers to participate in the flawed elections in their millions. Of course, Chamisa lied and he has haemorrhaged political credibility it is doubtful he can con his followers to participate in the flawed 2028 elections in their millions again.

1. 2) The constitution say a president can serve a maximum of two five year team, Mnangagwa will have served his maximum two terms in 2028. 

   

So the lead balloon to allow Mnangagwa to stay in power till 2030 will mean avoiding the serious challenges of rigging the 2028 election and getting away with it and bending without breaking the maximum two term limit. Mnangagwa will be killing two birds with one stone. 

MPs and President are elected to serve a fixed five-year term and at the end of which they must get a fresh mandate from the people in a free, fair and credible elections. There is no constitutional provision to allow the MPs and President to willy-nilly extend their mandate. NONE!

Zanu PF knows postponing elections is a lead balloon and know lead balloons will never fly. They are making a big sing and dance of flying a lead balloon to draw attention away from the fact that the regime is doing nothing to ensure 2028 elections are free and fair. We must focus on ensuring people are not conned yet again to participate in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy. Proving that lead balloons do not fly will be easy!