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Call for elections premature
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
March 10, 2010

Zimbabwe's two main political parties, ZANU PF led by President Robert Mugabe and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai have highlighted that they are ready for elections with President Mugabe stating that the country would go to the polls in February 2011 when the lifespan of the Inclusive Government comes to an end, with or without a new Constitution. The two Principles are calling for elections yet reality on the ground reveals that the administrative framework and contextual environment necessary for holding democratic, free and fair elections is highly compromised owing to failure by the Inclusive Government to implement democratic reforms. Some of the issues prejudicing the holding of democratic elections are: the skewed voters roll, lack of independent of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) and the Delimitation Commission, the existence of repressive laws and the volatile political environment.

The administration of Zimbabwe's elections is done by ZEC, the office of the Registrar General and the Delimitation Commission. Instead of operating independently and safeguarding the vote of citizens, these institutions remain politically compromised owing to their composition. The Registrar General's office responsible for updating the voters Roll and conducting voter registration, has proved its incompetence as evidenced by multiple entries in the voters roll and the existence of ghost voters. A research study conducted by the Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) revealed that there are 134 202 voters above the age of 90 registered in Zimbabwe. In countries with an aging population like Japan, this could be deemed normal, but in a country like Zimbabwe Ravaged by the AIDS pandemic, acute poverty and life expectancy of 34 and 37 for females and males respectively, this statistic is misleading. Evidently, there are ghost voters in the database who have been used over the years as an instrument to rig elections.

Without a proper audit of the voters roll, delimitation of constituency borders cannot be determined as it is determined by the number of voters in each area. During the 2008 elections, farms were marked as constituencies while some people in Harare North Constituency used communal proof of residence alth0ough they were not resident in those areas.

In 2008, it took ZEC one month to release all the Presidential and Parliamentary results despite the fact that in past elections, results would be released within two days after polls closed. It is widely believed that dFuring the one month period the electoral commission was doctoring results to avoid a clear opposition win. The impartiality of the offices which run elections in Zimbabwe is largely influenced by the appointment process which is done by the incumbent President, who is also a candidate in the elections. This means whatever decisions reached are influenced by the President.

Contrary to expectations from a broad church of Zimbabweans that the political environment would improve following the birth of an Inclusive Government, little change has been experienced due to failure to conduct institutional and legislative reform. Reformation of state institutions accused of fanning violence in the run up to the June 2008 Presidential election run-off has not taken place with cases of state sponsored violence re-emerging mostly in rural areas. There have been reports of uniformed forces in Chegutu, Masvingo, Matebeleland North, Matebeleland South and Manicaland campaigning for the controversial Kariba Draft and threatening MDC supporters with assault. The late Masipula Sithole in a research study conducted after the 2000 elections noted that ZANU PF had won because of the 'margin of terror' as opposed to the 'margin of error'. The same happened with June 27 Presidential run-off election and could happen if the country goes to the polls in 2011 without destroying the infrastructure of violence.

Legislative reform, which was supposed to be at the top of the Inclusive Government's agenda, is still far from being carried out. Repressive laws including the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) which mandates people to acquire police clearances for meetings and the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) which limits the freedom to access information remain an impediment to democratic reforms in the country. POSA was used during the March 2008 campaign period to disallow the MDC, from holding rallies. The police have, over the past months intensified the use of this draconian piece of legislation by arresting MDC supporters who conduct meetings without clearances thereby negating their freedoms of association and expression.

One of the most notorious pieces of legislation, the Presidential Powers Temporary Measures Act, give the President power to make executive decisions without consulting Parliament. In the March 2008 elections, the act was used to allow police officers to assist the differently-able in voting despite amendments made to the Electoral Act by the MDC and ZANU PF. The same law could be used to further amend the Electoral Act to suite ZANU PF ultimately leading to compromised election results.

The public media particularly the Herald and the state Broadcaster, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Cooperation (ZBC) ideally owned by the people of Zimbabwe have been used as ZANU PF propaganda tools, elevating the party's top officials and denigrating other political players and critics of the government. Despite making assurances that the public media would be used in a non-partisan manner, nothing has improved more than one year after the consummation of the Inclusive Government.

The importance of a new Constitution during Zimbabwe's transitional phase cannot be underestimated. Over a period of 28 years, a record 18 amendments were made to the Constitution, before the 19th amendment, which legalised the Inclusive Government. These amendments were made not to improve its content but to create an omnipotent President, answerable only to himself. The flawed Constitution coupled with the Presidential Powers Act gives the President power over any processes, which take place in Zimbabwe including the elections. The need for a new, democratic Constitution before the elections is premised on the need to create an enabling environment with regards to the administration of the elections and the reformation of key state institutions, which are used to dictate Zimbabwe's political course.

To call for elections when very little has changed in the administrative and political environment is tantamount to robbing the people of Zimbabwe of their right to choose their leaders in a conducive environment. Before the Inclusive Government begins contemplating elections, they should put in place measures to ensure that the country transits to a democracy ultimately resulting in more transparent elections. Zimbabweans are a people devastated by years of political turmoil under a ruthless regime and yearning for change. There is thus need for the government to reform key stat institutions, repeal repressive laws and put an end to politically motivated violence before the holding of fresh elections.

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