Chamisa told not to intimidate Bench

Zanu-PF has warned MDC-Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa against interfering with the judicial processes ahead of tomorrow's hearing by the Constitutional Court of a case in which he is contesting President Mnangagwa's victory in the July 30 presidential election.

In a statement yesterday, Zanu-PF National Secretary for Finance Patrick Chinamasa said: "Zanu-PF notes with growing concern continued attempts by Nelson Chamisa to intimidate the Bench ahead of the Constitutional Court case on the just-ended harmonised elections which has been set down for hearing on Wednesday, 22nd August, 2018.

"His statement this afternoon which is completely bereft of any legal grounding or basis, builds on many such well documented utterances and threats which he made throughout the campaign period, including declaring himself the inevitable winner well ahead of the polls, and well before vote counting and the announcement of results; threatening spiralling violence should the vote go against him and, threatening to spoil matters for the eventual electoral winner.

"Today, and with hindsight, we now know these were not empty threats, given the tragic events of 1st August, 2018." Mr Chamisa yesterday addressed a press conference in Harare where he threatened to mobilise Zimbabweans "to make sure their vote is protected".

"Our first avenue is the legal route," he said.

"The second avenue is the political one."

Mr Chamisa said what was on trial in the courts "is democracy" and stated they were already "rolling out a government programme" of action.

Prior to the elections, Mr Chamisa vowed to make the country ungovernable if he lost the polls to President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF. Chinamasa said Chamisa's actions were well-calculated.

"His latest pronouncements which are very much in character show a continued predisposition towards political violence, and well calculated attempts at poisoning the environment for a fair trial by instilling fear in judges so they may, as a result of fear, subvert the law in his favour," he said.

"It defies legal sense why a person who is an officer of the court seeks to make extra-judicial pronouncements while still making court submissions at the same time, and ahead of due process only two days away."

Chinamasa urged Zimbabweans to unequivocally reject litigants who try to make up for a bad case through public violence and intimidation of the Bench, and by casting aspersions on "our well-regarded judicial system".

"Indeed, this leaves right-thinking people wondering why he has submitted himself to court processes in which he lacks confidence and, what is more, when he disrespectfully seeks to be at once a complainant and a judge in his own case," he said.

"Confident litigants respect court processes and avoid running shrill propaganda campaigns against both the Bench and their opponents. Such unlawful conduct further fortifies our long held view that what Chamisa and his Alliance partners are looking for is not justice, but a subversion and reversal of the verdict which the people of Zimbabwe expressed through the ballot box on 30 July, 2018."