MDC-T spokesman, Obert Gutu
EYEBROWS have been raised over huge victory margins posted by ZANU-PF in last weekend’s three by-elections, with stakeholders this week expressing shock at the big numbers.
Elections held in Marondera Central, Mbire and Epworth on Saturday were largely characterised by voter apathy.
In Marondera Central, ZANU-PF fielded Lawrence Katsiru, who is widely ill-spoken of in the constituency.
Zalera Makari stood for ZANU-PF in Epworth despite being unknown even by the party’s leadership in Harare province, while Douglas Karoro, whose involvement with the party is little known by the public, stood in Mbire.
ZANU-PF won the weekend polls resoundingly, extending its run of uninterrupted by-election victories since the electoral juggernaut started with the Wedza North by-election in March and later 16 other constituencies that became vacant after the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) recalled 21 Parliamentary members who had defected to join a breakaway outfit.
Karoro was the biggest winner with 11 635 votes in Mbire, while Makari got 10 509 votes in Epworth. Katsiru polled 8 978 votes in Marondera Central.
With the biggest opposition party, the MDC-T, maintaining its poll boycott until government implements electoral reforms, ZANU-PF was always guaranteed victory but many felt the huge margins it scored were questionable given the overwhelming evidence of voter apathy that characterised the three by-elections.
There were also reports of irregularities in the way the voting was conducted, from alleged bribery, vote buying, assisted voting and voter intimidation to the spoiling of ballots.
A Financial Gazette news crew which went around polling stations in Epworth and Marondera Central witnessed an extraordinarily low voter turnout, with virtually no queues during the entire voting process.
At many polling stations, polling officers and police details spent the better part of the day relaxing and conversing in sheds, while people walked past the polling stations as if there were no elections taking place.
Only 15 people had cast their ballot at one polling station in Marondera by 11am.
The MDC-T said the ruling party’s large victory margins were a lie “only the gullible will swallow”.
“Those figures are cooked,” charged MDC-T spokesman, Obert Gutu.
“No sane mind can believe those fake numbers in view of evident apathy. This is one of the major reasons why we are strenuously demanding electoral reforms in the country.”
Spokesperson for the newly formed People’s Democratic Party, Jacob Mafume, described the figures as ridiculous and unbelievable.
“We are having miracle votes in by-elections. In fact, this is not an election. These are ZANU-PF succession games at play and it would be foolhardy for us to be part of those games. We want the political cannibalism in ZANU-PF to continue and we shall then fight the tired survivors,” he said.
Tawanda Chimhini, director of the Elections Resource Centre, a local electoral pressure group, which monitored the polls, called on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to avail all election material on the by-elections to verify the authenticity of the electoral outcomes.
“There is need for an independent assessment to ensure the authenticity of the figures to see if they correspond with the voter’s roll and the actual ballots cast. We have called on ZEC to give us access to election residue, but that has not been (done).
“It’s a question of transparency and it should not be difficult for ZEC to avail that residue and naturally, there is always going to be speculation about the authenticity of the figures,” said Chimhini.
Critics also said the by-elections provided a telling revelation on ZANU-PF’s desperation to quickly assert its electoral authority and served as a vital sign of what could be expected in the 2018 general elections.
Some said the situation, particularly in Epworth where an unknown candidate went on to secure over 10 000 votes, was a bold statement by ZANU-PF that it did not need public support to win elections.
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