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Election 2013 Special – Issue 02
Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) & Media Alliance of Zimbabwe (MAZ)
July 29, 2013

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This is the second issue of the MAZ/CHRA Right to Information campaign newsletter that looks at key election issues. MAZ and CHRA believe very strongly that the credibility of any election lies largely on the ability of the election commission and various stakeholders to provide critical information about the electoral process. For the election commission the choice is limited, they are obligated by law to proactively provide the public with objective voter information at various stages of the election in fulfilment of the right to information.

In this issue our lead story will look at funding for the 2013 General Election. The Right to Information campaign is premised on the principle that the public has a right to information held by public bodies; therefore the public has a right to know among other issues on elections, how public money is spent on elections. A survey carried out by CHRA and MAZ indicated that only 6% of respondents know the budgets and expenditures of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), the body that is charged with the mandate to run elections. Provision of information to the public would ensure that those who are running elections do so in a transparent and accountable manner and deliver the best value to the electorate, who are in essence funding the election.

Important questions that have been raised ahead of the 31 July election are whether ZEC has adequate resources to effectively deliver a credible election as well as what the sources of funding for the election are. The importance of adequate resourcing of election administration has been noted by various bodies in different fora. The UN General Assembly Resolution 66/163 of 2012 on Strengthening the role of the United Nations in enhancing periodic and genuine elections and the promotion of democratization for example notes “the importance of adequate resources for the administration of efficient and transparent elections at the national and local levels, and recommends that Member States provide adequate resources for these elections, including to consider establishing internal funding where feasible.”

The newsletter will also look at key information issues in the electoral period and what information voter’s need to know before they cast their ballots. We also feature a diagrammatic representation of how individual votes will be tabulated, courtesy of the ZEC website.

Lastly, we would like to acknowledge the overwhelming response that we received for the first edition of the Right to Information newsletter that featured the five Presidential candidates. In addition we would like to thank you all, our partners and friends for the support to this newsletter. We hope this second edition will increase knowledge and information on key election related concerns.

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