News / National
MDC-T wants poll results in 12 hours
08 Apr 2013 at 12:48hrs | Views
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC says it wants upcoming general election results announced within 12 hours, saying this will kill off any attempts of rigging the final results. This follows the embarrassing debacle in 2008 when election results were announced after five weeks amid accusations of manipulation.
Five years after President Robert Mugabe's disputed re-election in a poll that took 40 days to announce the outcome,raising doubts over the credibility of the results, MDC secretary-general Tendai Biti on Saturday told a gathering of thousands of MDC's supporters at a rally in Harare that they will not countenance a repeat of that scenario.
Biti said if their election needs were not met, they will be forced to make matters into their own hands.
"We are giving Zec (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission) 12 hours to announce results or else we will be in Steward Room (in the Meikles Hotel) announcing that Save (Tsvangirai) has 75 percent," he said.
The new Zimbabwean constitution states that the electoral commission should make sure 'the results of the election or referendum are announced as soon as possible after the close of the polls.
The three ruling parties amended the Electoral Act so that the Zec is obliged to declare presidential election results not more than five days after the day of voting.
"In other countries who have more than 90 million voters like United States of America could announce results within hours, I do not see why Zimbabwe with around six million voters could not follow suit," says Biti.
Though the date of elections has remained a contentious issue between President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai, both parties say they have had enough of the coalition government.
Five years after President Robert Mugabe's disputed re-election in a poll that took 40 days to announce the outcome,raising doubts over the credibility of the results, MDC secretary-general Tendai Biti on Saturday told a gathering of thousands of MDC's supporters at a rally in Harare that they will not countenance a repeat of that scenario.
Biti said if their election needs were not met, they will be forced to make matters into their own hands.
"We are giving Zec (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission) 12 hours to announce results or else we will be in Steward Room (in the Meikles Hotel) announcing that Save (Tsvangirai) has 75 percent," he said.
The new Zimbabwean constitution states that the electoral commission should make sure 'the results of the election or referendum are announced as soon as possible after the close of the polls.
The three ruling parties amended the Electoral Act so that the Zec is obliged to declare presidential election results not more than five days after the day of voting.
"In other countries who have more than 90 million voters like United States of America could announce results within hours, I do not see why Zimbabwe with around six million voters could not follow suit," says Biti.
Though the date of elections has remained a contentious issue between President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai, both parties say they have had enough of the coalition government.
Source - dn
