”Disputed polls to worsen voter apathy” proclaimed Bulawayo 24 headline.
“The frequency of disputed elections in Zimbabwe, the most recent being the August 23 polls, will discourage more registered voters from participating in electoral processes, electoral watchdogs and analysts have warned,” said the report.
“CCC has accused Mnangagwa and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) of election fraud and is calling for fresh elections.
“According to ZEC, about two million registered voters failed to vote out of approximately 6,6 million eligible voters, a trend analysts said was worrying.”
Blaming the voter apathy is the default setting of some analysts and opposition politicians alike but none of this would stand close scrutiny.
MDC/CCC’s flagship winning in rigged elections strategy after the 2018 elections was “mass voter registration, mass voting and guard the vote!” The party promised to register 6 million new voters, most the young. Four years down the line, 30 May 2022, ZEC announced that only 1/4 million new voters had registered. Even if we assumed that they were all CCC supporters, that was only 4% of the party’s 6 million target.
It is common knowledge that Harare had only two voter registration centres, that to register one needed an ID which were hard to get, etc., etc. Even if one jumped all these obstacles, this was no guarantee one would be on the voters’ roll.
In 1995 I arm-twisted nine people to make sure they registered to vote. I saw their voter registration slips with my own eyes. When the voters’ roll was realised only one out of nine was on the voters’ roll.
With each election ZEC has added more and more complexities for the sole purpose of denying the people their right to a meaningful say. Many people who had checked and confirmed they were on the national voters’ roll failed to vote on 23 August 2023 because their details were not in the polling station they expected.
The nation has moved from a constituency voters’ roll to a polling station voters’ roll. And the number of polling stations has increased from 10 or so in 2008 to over 60 this years. Voting in Zimbabwe is a game of Russian Roulette. Whilst Zanu PF officials got the up to date voters’ roll with all the details of the voter, which polling station and even mobile numbers. The opposition candidate got the out dated voters’ roll with many of the details missing.
Zimbabwe’s electoral problem is not voter apathy per se but vote rigging. The MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms during the 2008 to 2013 GNU designed to free key state institutions like ZEC to carry out their duties of ensuring free, fair and credible elections.
Morgan Tsvangirai et al failed to implement even one token reform in five years because they believed MDC would ride on their popularity and win rigged elections. Ever since the GNU debacle, MDC/CCC have all but abandoned efforts to implement democratic reforms in pursuit of the more nebulous winning in rigged elections strategies.
It the Russian dictator Joseph Stalin who infamously said, “It is not those who cast the vote who matter but those who count the votes!”
In Zimbabwe we know Zanu PF has carte blanche powers to rig elections, it is insane to hope to win rigged elections especially after 43 years of Zanu PF mafiosi rigging elections. We should focus on implementing the democratic reforms to ensure free, fair and credible elections and only then can we meaningful address the problem of voter.
Both SADC and AU had condemned the 23 August 2023 Zimbabwe elections as flawed and illegal, so flawed the process could not produce a legitimate government. This is a repeat of what happened in the 2008 elections marred by Zanu PF’s blatant cheating and wanton violence. The country was forced to form a GNU whose primary task was to implement the democratic reforms to stop the blatant cheating and wanton violence. As we know not even one meaningful reform was implemented hence the reason we have yet another flawed and illegal election.
Zimbabwe we need a new GNU, just as happened in 2008, only this time we must implement all the democratic reforms without failure! We must cure ourselves of the curse of rigged elections and bad governance, no if no but!
“CCC has accused Mnangagwa and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) of election fraud and is calling for fresh elections.”
In MDC/CCC we have a corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless opposition. They accuse Mnangagwa and ZEC of rigging the elections one minute and, next minute, they are refusing to implement reforms because they have winning in rigged elections strategies. Given a chance Chamisa and company will want to stampede the nation into fresh elections with not even one democratic reform implemented. A situation that would suit Zanu PF to a t.
The new GNU must implement all the democratic reforms without failure. Neither Zanu PF nor CCC can be trusted to do this, if they failed to get even one token reform implemented in 5 years in the last GNU what is there to suggest they will do any better this time.
26 comments:
Vote apathy cannot be meaningfully addressed without first addressing it root cause - vote rigging! MDC/CCC have failed to implement even one reform in 23 years to end the curse of rigged elections.
@ Nay Chosen
“WE DON'T WANT A NEW GNU WE WANT THE ELECTED PRESIDENT TO RULE PERIOD!!!! THEY WILL STILL HAVE POWER TO SUPPRESS REFORMS IN GNU. WE WANT FRESH ELECTIONS FULL STOP!!!!!!”
The election process was so flawed these was no verified voters' roll so the "elected president" was elected by whom?
Even if we have fresh elections in 3 or 6 months as CCC have been demanding and SADC and AU supervise them and CCC has a clean sweep in local and national government. As soon as the SADC and AU staff move out the Zanu PF captured ZEC, Police, Judiciary, etc. will move back in with the view of reclaiming everything. By 2028 Zanu PF will be ready to reclaim all power.
Are you going to ask SADC and AU to supervise those elections too?
The 2008 to 2013 GNU failed to implement even one token reform because MDC leaders sold out. Worse still after the GNU debacle they gave up on reforms to peddle the idiotic nonsense they had winning in rigged elections strategies.
We just need to make sure the new GNU has competent men and women who will implement all the reforms. Let’s deal with the curse of rigged elections decisively here and now!
@ Ibbo Mandaza
Very interesting.
I agree that the last GNU was a wasted opportunity to implement reforms and get the nation back on a democratic footing. The new GNU must deliver the reforms without failure. There must be no compromise of the composition of the new GNU being able to deliver reforms. The idea of 1/3 Zanu PF, 1/3 CCC and 1/3 others is a compromise too far. The two party constitute 2/3 majority, 2/3 of the same individuals who failed to implement even one reform in 5 years!
SADC leaders struggled to get the last GNU to do anything, there is nothing to suggest they will be willing to do the same again. If we are going to get the reforms implemented, we the people of Zimbabwe will have to do most if not all the heavy lifting. Asking for a wishy-washy GNU will be setting ourselves up for yet another failure!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JI7YNCzLIqM
The root cause of Zimbabwe's election disputes is the rigged elections - we should stop putting sticky band-aids to fix a broken limb!
https://www.zimeye.net/2023/09/11/disputed-polls-worsening-voter-apathy-stop-using-sticky-band-aid-to-fix-broken-limb-vote-rigging/
@ Dr M’membe
“It's time these puppets, agents of imperialism and white monopoly capital realised that their assignment to deliver the election result their masters were expecting in Zimbabwe has failed.
They will not manage to manipulate the whole of SADC into joining their scheme. They are isolated and almost alone. It requires little intelligence – if a little is all one has – to realise that the extraordinary SADC meeting they are seeking over the Zimbabwe elections will not happen.
And their endeavours on this score may just lead to further isolation, ridicule and humiliation.”
Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts these exercising it so much so they believe they are invincible. After 43 years of rigging elections and getting away with it scot-free, Mnangagwa and his cronies did not expect that any one who ever challenge them on elections. The SADC and AU reports damning the elections were a lighting bolt out of the clear blue sky. Mnangagwa is in denial and even now, three weeks after the damning reports Mnangagwa is expecting to wake up to find it was all a bad dream.
“If you dream of anyone else governing Zimbabwe other than Zanu PF; then you must consult your ancestors for giving you such a horrible dream.” Mnangagwa has often boasted. Well he must be horrified to find Zanu PF’s demise is for real!
MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship during the 2008 to 2013 GNU, Mugabe bribed you lot with the trappings of high office and you forgot about reforms. What zones of autonomy were you protecting by failing to implement reforms.
MDC/CCC has participated in these flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy out of greed. You, Tendai Biti , has admitted on the sheer futility of participating in these flawed elections.
“Look, you can't keep on participating in flawed electoral processes that serve to give big benefits to dictators such as Robert Mugabe. Mugabe has perfected the art of winning elections. So it will be very foolish for the opposition to continue legitimizing these sham elections which don't deliver. This country will go through a serious economic crisis in 2020 caused by Zanu PF. And yet, this is the only country where a government doesn't perform, it is encouraged by a super majority in parliament,” said Tendai Biti in a 2015 interview with Isaac Mugabi.
“So you can't continue subjecting Zimbabweans to processes where their hopes just get crushed.”
Many had hoped that after SADC and AU had declared the 23 August flawed and illegal CCC leaders will do the right thing for once and side with SADC, AU and the long suffering people of Zimbabwe. Alas! This was not to be, greed has completely rotted your brain and judgement!
Warned that ANC has fighting to stop regime change in Zimbabwe but would not want to accept the consequence of another five years of Mnangagwa failed state.
He is just a political thug calling on SADC to help now only because he is desperate to get back into power. Last time SADC intervened Kasukuwere did not want any reforms implemented because he was in Zanu PF. Ignore this thug, he is totally irrelevant!
Making sure we have free and fair elections is not a serious challenge and given competent leaders and citizens we should have achieved this with the country's independence in 1980. Why we are still failing to sort this simple task speaks volumes of our competence as a nation. Shocking that after 43 years after independence in this day and age, millions of our people still have no clue what constitutes free, fair and credible elections. Fcuk me!
Support SADC and AU condemnation of the rigged 23 August elections and demand the need for a new GNU. Insist the new GNU must implement the reforms without failure. It is self evident Zanu PF and CCC cannot be in the new GNU since they failed to implement even one reform during the last GNU.
After the 2017 it was MDC who were calling for a GNU and now it was Zanu PF. Both parties have never cared about getting the people's democratic mandate in a free, fair and credible elections. All they care about is getting into power by hook or by crook.
Zimbabwe is a divided nation with the filthy rich Zanu PF ruling elite on one side and the filthy poor mass on the other side, separated by a high wall topped with razor fence.
MDC and the rest in the opposition have participating in flawed elections knowing fully well Zanu PF was rigging the elections and that doing so would give the regime legitimacy. Still they have participated regardless because the bribe was the gravy train seats - a chance to live on the filthy rich side of the divide.
Even after SADC and AU condemned the elections those who had won the highly converted gravy train seats did not hesitate to take up their seat and join the illegitimate regime. Greed rules the Zanu PF and CCC roosts!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rKFpYWAW8c
@ Evangelist
You have never understood what reforms are, how they were to be implemented and that the GNU was supposed to get that job done. It is therefore no surprise that you do want reforms and a new GNU!
Any one who wants this curse of rigged elections exorcised will know we need reforms and a new GNU is the vehicle that will get us there!
If we go into fresh elections without reforms, this will give Zanu PF time to regroup and in 2028 they will be back with vengeance. Are you going to ask SADC and AU to supervise these elections too?
“We don’t need a new GNU, never!” How naive! Just as you did not need the last GNU and hence the reason why MDC failed to implement even one reform in five years!
One of the reasons why Zimbabwe is in this mess is we have too many fools wittering on matters they have no clue and, worst of all, they have a vote!
@ Taque
“Assuming it’s true
We voted for her, she wasn’t appointed. If people didn’t want her, she would have lost elections.”
The whole electoral process was so flawed and illegal it could not produce a legal result. Are you suggesting opposition candidates who win in these flawed elections are legitimate regardless of how flawed the process happened to be?
If so then what is the difference with Muzorewa’s 1978 Internal Settlement? The system was so flawed blacks were second class citizens, we are to ignore that because it created “zones of autonomy” as Tendai Biti would put it.
If the nation had accepted the 1978 internal Settlement it would last many decades. The cosy relationship in which Zanu PF blatant rigs the elections and MDC/CCC participate for a few gravy train seats has lasted ten years and counting.
The real big surprise here is ever since the GNU debacle MDC/CCC have been running with the povo hare by day and hunting with the Zanu PF hounds by night; many Zimbabweans out there did not even notice.
When SADC and AU condemned the 23 August elections CCC leaders were forced to side with Zanu PF out of greed; now they are hunting with the Zanu PF hounds in broad daylight! Alas! There are some Zimbabweans out there who brain has completely ossified they still fail to notice CCC are no longer fighting for reforms and free elections!
Zimbabwe has more than her fair share of mentally challenge electorate; no wonder the country is a failed state!
Chamisa claimed that he had won the elections and yet did not have the V11 forms to prove it! His followers have all taken their gravy train seats in parliament, etc. are these not Zanu PF captured institutions? Stop talking nonsense!
Zanu PF's bully-boy tactic of attacking the messenger to stifle debate and democratic discourse must be condemned in no uncertain language. Alas! MDC/CCC has copied the same bully-boy tactics any one who has dared to question Chamisa, has been subjected to relentless abuse.
Criticise Zanu PF or CCC or both and you are a puppet, a CIO or worse! Enough is enough of this bulls***t! I totally support the Zambian demo demanding an end to these Zanu PF name calling and threats!
We really need to take these hooligans to task and show they cannot abuse and threaten other people just because they are losing the argument. These bully-boy thugs are subject to the laws governing civilised behaviour and they are not above the law.
@ George
Your stupidity never seize to amaze me! You are always frothing about "copy and paste messages" talking about rigged elections but you are indifferent about the reality of 43 years of rigged elections and the tragic consequences they have brought to the nation!
As long as we continue to have corrupt and incompetent opposition parties like CCC who are participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy out of greed and their brain dead supporters who have their heads in Chamisa’s back side the insanity of rigged elections will continue. I realise I am now public enemy number one for questioning Chamisa. Well get this one into your empty head I will continue to question him and demand reforms! I will never ever be silenced by nincompoop like you!
@ Mukanya
That is rich coming from one brought up on repeating empty slogans and nothing else. It is not the repeated message that you dislike but the criticism of Chamisa. You cannot bear hearing that CCC are participating in these flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy out of greed. It is true and the nation must hear a thousand times until it sinks in if the nation is ever going to get out of this mess.
I am concerned about ending the insanity of rigged elections and the tragic consequences this has brought. I don't give a damn about your misplaced ego and belief that CCC leaders must never be questioned! They are sell outs and they will be held to account - that is not negotiable!
You participated in these flawed elections knowing fully well that dong so would give Zanu PF legitimacy but did it regardless out of greed. You accepted your gravy train seats even after SADC and AU declared the 23 August elections flawed. Where is the "Zimbabwe for everybody!" in that?
Well SADC and AU have just done that by rejecting the 23 August 2023 elections as a farce! Tyrants think they are invincible only to find that they are not!
@ Makura
“Don’t think this is an objective comment at all let alone come from one who ran away from their country because it has been messed up by some blood sucking thieves. What have you done to show that you are in this democratic warfare to change the status quo for the good of the nation other than spew venom against those in the trenches fighting day in day out.
We have a good constitution which was fought for and went through a referendum and adopted in 2013 but how many times was that constitution bastardised from 2018 when ED took full control with the aid of rented opposition while people just stand by and watch expecting those outnumbered to fight for them.
Unless you and I change our mindset and get to realise that we in this together for the future generations then those who have given themselves an entitlement to Zim will continue to loot with impunity.
So you think MDC leaders were fighting for democratic change during the GNU when the failed to implement even one democratic reform in five years? Mugabe bribed them with the ministerial limos, generous salaries and allowance, a US$4 million mansion for Tsvangirai, etc., etc. And in return they forgot about the reforms.
It is very sad that even now, with the benefit of hindsight, you still have no clue that the primary task of the 2008 to 2013 GNU was to implement democratic reforms and that MDC leaders sold out. Given such stupidity the opportunity created by SADC and AU by condemning these August 2023 elections is going to be wasted just as the last GNU was wasted!
MDC/CCC leaders not only sold out on reforms and free elections but have been participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and thus perpetuating the people’s suffering out of greed. It is village idiots like you who must open their eyes and minds - assuming the brain has not all ossified into fat!
He has a point, Zimbabwe is a text book failed state because we have many who are "not all there!" After 43 year, in this day and age, and we are still failing to hold free, fair and credible elections, the nation is ruled by a buffoon so dum the gold mafia are looting the nation's treasures, etc., etc. Of course, we are a nation of dimwit!
So you think a petition to the British government would more effective in stopping Zanu PF rigging elections that MDC/CCC implementing the democratic reforms to ensure the independence of ZEC, Judiciary, etc.?
@ Sheps
You still have fixation on political parties as the panacea of all our problems! The panacea is the informed and vigilant electorate! If the people had not been so naive and gullible they would have never voted MDC/CCC leaders into power especially after they had proven beyond doubt that they were corrupt and incompetent by failing to implement even one reform during the GNU.
Even if SADC was to foster on us a healthy and functioning democracy at the end of the present political crisis, it will not last. If we got it in the morning by noon centres of autocratic rule will already be active preparing to seize power.
@ Nay Chosen
What you call criticise, I call it holding to account.
It is the duty of every citizen to hold those in public office to democratic account.
The trouble with some people is we believe is democracy, free elections, holding leaders to account, freedom of expressions, rule of law, etc., etc. as long as all these are working in their favour. What is it exactly you are complaining about?
“Why not bring up strategies that the opposition can use to stop rigging?” you asked.
How many times have I said the nation needs to implement the democratic reforms to stop rigging? It is not only me who has said that, the EU listed 23 reform recommendations in the 2018 elections report. SADC helped to set up the 2008 to 2013 GNU whose primary purpose was to implement reforms. MDC leaders failed to implement even one token reform n five years because Mugabe bribed them with the trappings of high office.
Worse still, MDC/CCC leaders have given up on reforms and have been participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy out of greed.
“Why do you do it?”
If SADC failed to get Tsvangirai and company to implement even one reform it would be very presumptuous of me to think I would have done any better.
The number one reasons that gave the MDC leaders confidence to ignore all call for democratic reforms was the iron cast guarantee that the wildebeest MDC herd will never ever question much less hold them to account for selling out on reforms. The herd had no clue what the reforms are before the GNU and they still have no clue today, even with the benefit of hindsight.
Of course, they have never blamed MDC/CCC leaders for selling out on reforms - cannot blame some one for something you don’t know.
I have because public enemy number one of the CCC herd because MDC/CCC leaders have done NOTHNG wrong and I am falsely accusing them of selling out - a cardinal sin in the herd’s books!
The herd has heard the same empty slogan repeated a hundred time at one rally, it is all sweet music to their ears. Zanu PF has rigged elections for 43 years and counting the herd has bore that with cliched teeth. But mention reforms and the fact that MDC/CCC leaders sold out and the herd goes wild with rage!
I am here to tell the mob what they must hear - the truth. MDC/CCC have not only sold out on reforms and free elections they will never implement the reforms.
You say you are concerned about the suffering of povo, so am I. CCC are participating in these flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and thus perpetuating the suffering of the ordinary Zimbabweans. You don’t believe me? Here is some one else saying the same thing!
“The (2013) electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility,” confessed David Coltart in his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe.
It is bad enough that CCC leaders decided to take their gravy train seats in this Zanu PF illegitimate government in defiance of SADC and AU who had declared the election flawed. CCC is now, once again, breaking up before our own eyes. Only Zanu PF stands to benefit from all this chaos!
https://www.facebook.com/4415858595176450/videos/3679922812306366
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