Back to Index

This article participates on the following special index pages:

Position on the current political situation
Zimbabwe Liberators Platform
February 18, 2011

Almost two years since the formation of the inclusive government between ZANU PF and the two MDC formations, uncertainty is still pervading the political landscape. It is instructive to note that both the Global Political Agreement (GPA) and the Inclusive Government were a consequence of an inconclusive electoral process of 29 March 2008 that failed to yield a legitimate government. The unwillingness of both ZANU PF and its leader Mugabe to accept defeat was clear to all. The ZLP Board of Trustees holds the view that it was the failure to address the underlying factors that accounted for the resultant electoral, constitutional and political impasse that has undermined political stability that still haunts the country to date. In their wisdom, the major political players chose to turn a blind eye on these thorny issues and instead directed their energies on peripheral issues that did little to address the real problem. In our view, the focus of attention should have been laying a sound framework for credible elections whose outcome would be incontestable. It is on account of the failure to adopt this approach that Zimbabwe is now poised to go back to square one and risk a repeat of the 2008 election experience with all the unpalatable and concomitant consequences of violent and inconclusive elections. All the indicators portend this frightening prospect.

The ZANU PF annual conference held in December 2010 in Mutare resolved to call for elections later this year without even a word about pre-requisite conditions for credible elections and it appears that little can be done to deter them from this disastrous course. ZANU PF is to all intents and purposes, undeterred, energetically oiling and mobilising its election campaign machinery. On the other hand, the responses from the other signatories to the GPA lack clarity as they are muddled by demands for clearing outstanding issues and a new constitution all of which have little bearing on the holding of credible elections whose outcome would be respected by everyone.

ZLP is of the view that, with the tenure of the inclusive government now in the twilight zone, it is imperative for all players, (civil society and the other political parties) to refocus on the urgent need to conclusively tackle all those issues that precipitated the crisis in the first place. There is a compelling need to come to terms with the reality of the glaring GPA flaws that gave rise to a dysfunctional inclusive government. It is no use flogging a dead horse and insisting on demands that will never materialise. There is very little likelihood that what was not achieved during the lifespan of the inclusive government could now all of a sudden be miraculously resolved. These so called outstanding issues bedevilling the inclusive government were front loaded in the defective GPA; it is a case of the parties to the GPA being hoist by their own petard. They should not hold progress towards a roadmap to credible elections hostage to their initial lack of foresight.

The failure by the inclusive government to usher in political stability was predicated on ZANU PF and Mugabe monopolising power and retaining control of not only the key ministries, but of strategic state institutions like the security forces, the civil service, the attorney-general and registrar-general's offices, and the judiciary. This sad state of affairs has paralysed the smooth functioning of government and rendered the other partners to the GPA impotent. It is inconceivable that such an arrangement could have been conducive to political stability and a return to normalcy and legitimate government based on the freely expressed will of the people.

To this end, ZLP advocates for a realistic roadmap towards elections that is a product of wide ranging consultations involving all the important stakeholders and should not be confined to the three political parties that have already demonstrated their inability to resolve the political impasse. It is high time the other marginalised players like civil society and the other political parties entered the fray.

We for our part insist on addressing the following concerns whose resolution should pave the way for free, fair, transparent and credible elections and the respect of their outcome as the inviolate will of the people of Zimbabwe:-

1. There are numerous cases and persistent reports of increasing political violence in both the urban and rural areas and the resurgence of 'political bases' that serve as the nuclei for violence ahead of both the projected referendum on the new constitution and the anticipated elections to be held later this year. We call on the Troika of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and security to fully investigate these reports in the interest of guaranteeing violent free elections.

2. There have also been numerous reports of the state security forces from the military, the police and the CIO being deployed in the countryside ahead of the anticipated referendum and elections with a view to them orchestrating and spearheading ZANU PF's election campaign. Such conduct by the security forces is inconsistent with the provision of their non-partisan service to the country that is enshrined not only in the country's constitution but in the related Defence, Police and Prisons Acts as well. This in itself is cause for great concern and a pointer to the need for thoroughgoing security sector transformation to depoliticise the security forces and oblige them to assume their professional role as provided by the constitution and the relevant statutory provisions and in line with SADC's norms and standards for regional security forces. To this end, we call on the SDAC Troika not only to spearhead security sector reform but to investigate the allegations of partisan conduct on the part of the security forces.

3. There have been a number of undemocratic utterances by some senior ZANU PF politicians and senior serving members of the security forces to the effect that they would never countenance ZANU PF's defeat at the coming polls. These statements by themselves undermine the need and purpose for elections by insisting on a predetermined outcome and threatening unpalatable consequences should the result be otherwise. Such conduct is inconsistent with the provisions for SADC's norms and standards for elections. This therefore warrants thorough investigation by the SADC Troika and calls for appropriate sanctioning of the wayward conduct for those concerned.

4. There is credible evidence that the whole structure of local government and the traditional leadership holds totally partisan allegiance to ZANU PF in defiance of the laws governing their authority. Their partisan allegiance has a determining effect on the conduct of elections and there is need to ensure that the behaviour of these authorities is closely monitored to ensure that they do not bring undue influence on the electorate through improper use of their offices.

5. The media plays a very pivotal role in any democracy in general and in particular during an election by affording both the contestants equal access to market their views to the electorate and the general public to make informed choices and preferences based on what they get through an objective media. Zimbabwe's public media landscape is highly partisan, far from objective, and derogatory of other political players and civil society. It is an overriding pre-requisite to liberalise the public media ahead of the elections, particularly the electronic media where ZANU PF has a monopoly of control and influence.

6. All statutes that have a bearing on the conduct of elections should be amended or scrapped to accord with the requirement for free, fair and transparent elections in line with SADC's norms and standards for elections. These include the Electoral Act, the Public Order and Security Act (POSA), the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and the Broadcasting Services Act.

7. Benchmarks should be set for institutional reforms for all such agencies that have a bearing on the conduct of elections such as the security forces, ZEC secretariat, the registrar general and attorney general's offices, the judiciary, and the civil service election management structures.

8 . A thorough audit and transparent compilation of the voter's roll that should include all Zimbabweans of voting age, including all those in the Diaspora who have a stake in the country's future, is mandatory. No political party, much less a dysfunctional inclusive government without a mandate, has a right to disenfranchise more than 50% of the country's eligible voters that were displaced beyond the country's borders. Anything to the contrary of allowing them to vote militates against the very basic tenets of democracy.

9. In view of the dysfunctional inclusive government and the patent partisanship and impotence of institutions charged with the conduct of elections such as the Zimbabwe Independent Electoral Commission (ZEC), we call on SADC to assume full responsibility for the organisation and supervision of the elections with requisite support from the United Nations and the African Union so as to underwrite the legitimacy of the election and ensure the acceptance of its outcome by all, and thereby avoid the unavoidable bickering that would ensue should the inclusive government take responsibility. It has to be pointed out that Zimbabwe does not have a legitimate government with a mandate from the people of Zimbabwe and that the so-called independent commissions are staffed by party appointees who are beholden to partisan interests. The lesson of the role of partisan institutions in the recent elections in the Ivory Coast should not be lost on any one.

10. We call on SADC to involve all stakeholders, including civil society, in drawing up a roadmap for credible elections. Zimbabwe is much more than the three signatory parties to the GPA. There are many other players with a stake in the lasting resolution of the country's political impasse and whose future, security and welfare are dependant on the outcome of the elections. It is only fair to give them a chance to be heard. Those three parties that purported to have a mandate to negotiate a deal to resolve the political impasse have evidently failed.

11. We hold that non-core issues that are peripheral to the conduct of credible elections should be shelved in the interest of maintaining focus on the primary goal of producing a legitimate government. It is only that government with a people's mandate that should lead and organise the crafting of a new democratic constitution. Cluttering the road to credible elections with too many uncontrollable variables and unfulfillable demands would be counter-productive and only serve to divert focus from the goal of working towards the establishment of a legitimate government and reinforce the obstacles to the attainment of that objective.

Happyson Nenji and Wilfred Mhanda
For ZLP Board of Trustees

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

TOP