Staff Writer
It appears Zimbabwe is not ready for the holding of free and fair elections come March 26, 2022 by-elections with observers citing electoral laws as one of the inadequacies.
President Mnangagwa proclaimed March 26 as the date for long-awaited by-elections to fill vacant seats in the National Assembly and various local authorities across the country.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) had in 2020 suspended the holding of by-elections in line with government COVID-19 regulations, banning huge gatherings to curb the spread of the pandemic.
In Proclamation 1 of 2022, which was issued on December 24, 2021, and published by the ZEC last week, Mnangagwa fixed January 26, 2022 as the date on which nomination courts will sit to accept the filing of papers by prospective candidates.
There are 133 by-elections due for National Assembly and local authority seats, most of which fell vacant following the recall of Members of Parliament and councilors by the opposition MDC-T party.
Speaking in a Zoom meeting on the question “Is Zimbabwe Ready for the 26th March By Election” organized by Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN), Advocate Murdock Chivasa, a legal expert said both the electoral laws and the Constitution did not provide for free and fair elections.
“It is clear that the electoral laws and the constitution are not adequate for the holding of free and fair by-elections or any other elections.
“For example the appointment of ZEC commissioners is compromised because is done by the president and somehow Emmerson Mnangagwa is a player because his Zanu PF is also contesting in the elections.
“Secondly, there are a lot of restrictions because the nomination court is only open for one day from 11am until 4pm. If you fail to file papers within that period then it means you be able to contest.
“Thirdly, the list of regulations by police need to be revisited because then you want to campaign you have to first get clearance from police and that restrict a free and fair election because the ruling party has been holding gatherings,” Advocate Chivasa said.
Grace Ruvimbo Chirenje representing the Civil Society urged political parties to ensure that no one is left behind from exercising their democratic right to vote through information dissemination.
She also urged civil society to join political parties in raising awareness saying it was critical for young people to be involved in electoral processes.
“Voter registration is important but how do we communicate to young people? We have to ensure that the message resonate with young people and one way was to effectively make use of social media.
“There has to be lobbying around issues of National Identify Documents as well as election and sexual violence which takes place during the elections,” she said.
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