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NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

AMH Voices: A grand coalition can oust Zanu PF

AMH Voices
SINCE 1980, there have been elections. Various outcomes have been recorded. But the disturbing result has been Zanu PF’s continued dominance in all elections except in the 2000 parliamentary polls and 2008 March general elections, when President Robert Mugabe was defeated by MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai, leading to the June 27, 2008 presidential run-off.

SINCE 1980, there have been elections. Various outcomes have been recorded. But the disturbing result has been Zanu PF’s continued dominance in all elections except in the 2000 parliamentary polls and 2008 March general elections, when President Robert Mugabe was defeated by MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai, leading to the June 27, 2008 presidential run-off.

President R.G.Mugabe
President R.G.Mugabe

The question is: What can be the best weapon to brush aside and crush the Zanu PF rigging and cheating machinery in the upcoming polls?

Is it impossible for an opposition presidential candidate to defeat Mugabe or any other Zanu PF candidate for the same post by more than 51% of eligible votes cast?

The answer is a grand coalition of all opposition parties and pro-democracy elements in the 2018 polls can easily destroy Zanu PF.

Such a coalition of the People’s Democratic Party led by Tendai Biti, MDC-T led by Tsvangirai, MDC led by Welshman Ncube and the Zimbabwe People First led by Joice Mujuru will see all opposition parties’ resources marshalled to fight the Zanu PF monster.

Most importantly, all opposition supporters will then speak with one voice, making it hard for Zanu PF to divide the opposition vote.

The pooled human and intellectual resources of the opposition can easily overwhelm a fragmented, squabbling and exhausted Zanu PF, which is clueless on how to extricate this country from the economic abyss which it shoved us into.

Since the Zanu PF dominance has been achieved through rigging, violence and electoral manipulation, the opposition parties must, for the first time, put aside the so-called ideological, personal and seniority differences and enter the 2018 elections as a single bloc or coalition and see whether they can fail to stop Zanu PF.

The 2018 elections are around the corner and Zanu PF is at its weakest, ravaged by the succession fight.

The battle over who will take over from President Robert Mugabe and the mismanagement of the succession question give the opposition parties room to balloon their membership.

If the opportunities opened by infighting in Zanu PF are exploited to the fullest, it will definitely fall in 2018. Zanu PF has deliberately made people to live under fear so as to manipulate them during elections.

The fear is so embedded in people to the extent that some people believe that an electoral loss for Mugabe and Zanu PF can plunge this country into another bush war similar to the 1970s liberation war against the colonial settler regime.

Such a myth has to be debunked. The war was about one-man one-vote. People need to be educated on that. It seems like we are independent, but not free.

Now that we are independent, we have to finish the last mile, which is getting our freedom.

Leaders of opposition parties can dutifully help people of this country by coalescing for the purpose of bringing positive change come 2018. Coalition is the answer. Unite and crush Zanu PF once and for all.

Pardon