ZIMBABWE’s facilitator to the Global Political Agreement (GPA) and South African President Jacob Zuma says it would be suicidal for the country to go to polls without an enabling environment, as such an eventuality would very likely result in a repeat of the 2008 electoral violence.
Report by Feluna Nleya
Speaking on South African television channel eTV’s Africa 360 programme, Zuma said although the three parties – Zanu PF and the two MDCs – had agreed to holding elections next year, a lot still needed to be done to avoid a repeat of June 2008.
“It is a view of all parties there that by next year we should have elections,” said Zuma.
“I think the question then is how do we prepare the ground? Because if we are all agreed that we should have elections, then we should say how do we prepare the environment so that the environment will be conducive indeed for elections. We don’t want to have another election with problems. We want elections that will produce a free and fair result.”
President Robert Mugabe this week won a major electoral legal victory when High Court Judge President George Chiweshe ruled in favour of his application seeking the postponement of by-elections to March 31 next year when he intends to have harmonised elections held. Zuma, however, expressed satisfaction at the progress made in the constitution-making process.
“The process this day is not like before where there was no movement forward. There is movement forward. It’s a question of issues which will always be there where people will have views on certain things, but the process is moving forward in Zimbabwe,” said Zuma.
In March 2008, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai handed Mugabe, in power since Zimbabwe attained independence in 1980, his first electoral defeat, but without the outright majority to land the Presidency.
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Tsvangirai later pulled out of the June 2008 runoff poll, citing violence against his supporters by Zanu PF activists.
Mugabe’s electoral victory was not recognised regionally and internationally, forcing a unity government with his longtime rival. The MDC–T leader claimed over 200 of his supporters were killed and thousands displaced in 2008.
