Zanu-PF warns opposition parties

Zanu-PF has warned opposition parties that they will face a rout of epic proportions in the much-anticipated watershed elections next year in which they are expected to participate as a coalition.

Speaking to the Daily News after retaining the Mwenezi East constituency at the weekend, fit-again Zanu-PF spokesperson, Simon Khaya Moyo said they will bury the "disjointed" opposition with or without a coalition.

"The Mwenezi East by-election and previous by-elections send a clear message to disorganised opposition parties that come 2018 harmonised elections they would be buried forever.

"Instead of being cry babies and dreaming about a grand coalition they should either disband and join Zanu-PF or quit the world of politics altogether," Khaya Moyo told the Daily News.

"Zanu-PF is a party on an irreversible mission. The landslide victory by Zanu-PF in the Mwenezi East by-election speaks volumes of a well-oiled machine.

"Zanu-PF is a people's party with an eloquent history of liberating this country. Under the tried and tested leadership of president Mugabe, Zanu-PF has delivered land to its rightful owners, the black majority of this nation. Unlike the frustrated and disgruntled opposition parties, Zanu-PF has principles, sound policies and programmes which address people's lives," added Khaya Moyo.

Zanu-PF retained the Mwenezi East seat when its candidate, Joosbi Omar, secured 18 700 votes against the poor showing of candidates from the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) and the Free Zimbabwe Congress party who polled 482 and 386 votes, respectively.

The weekend's mini-poll was marred by allegations of intimidation, partisan food distribution and massive confusion on the voting day.

This led to opposition parties to warn that the chaos and irregularities witnessed in the by-election - which had an unusually high voter turnout despite the warring Zanu-PF contesting against little known opponents - were a bad omen for 2018.

"Zanu-PF knows that they are deeply unpopular with the masses. So, what the regime has done is to ring-fence rural areas and to use chiefs and other traditional leaders as its political commissars.

"Villagers are commandeered into voting for Zanu-PF to continue to stay safely in their villages and to continue accessing food aid and other assistance from the government.

"In other words, Zanu-PF is abusing the people's poverty and destitution that it created. People in rural areas are vulnerable to intimidation because they are constantly reminded of the June 2008 violence in which many people were killed and maimed, but no culprit was ever brought to book.

"The Zanu-PF regime is now harvesting from this state of fear and hopelessness," MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu said.

As if to underline the chaos which beset the Mwenezi East by-election, where many voters were turned away, even Omar was among those who struggled to vote on the day.

He was only able to cast his vote at the third attempt, after travelling almost 20 kilometres from the original polling station that he had visited.

The build-up to the by-election had also been sullied by allegations of vote-buying - which forced one of the better known candidates, Kudakwashe Bhasikiti, to withdraw from the contest.

Civil society group, Zimbabwe Election Support Network (Zesn) reported "widespread confusion" at polling stations, leading to many voters being turned away.

Zesn said most of the confusion arose as a result of poor voter education on the polling station-based voters' roll, which resulted in many voters turning up at the wrong polling stations.