Zimbabwe elections a closed chapter, says Sadc

THE Sadc secretariat has said the election report on Zimbabwe presented in Harare this week by head of the bloc's Election Observer Mission Mr Bernard Membe was final, quashing MDC-T claims yesterday that the report was inconclusive.

In a telephone interview yesterday, the head of public relations at the Sadc Secretariat in Botswana Ms Leefa Penehupifo Martin said Zimbabwe' elections were a closed chapter.

She said Mr Membe, being the head of the observer mission, had the authority to release the final report.

This flies in the face of claims by embattled MDC-T secretary general Mr Tendai Biti that Sadc was still to issue its final report and Mr Membe had no authority to release the report.

MDC-T, which lost to Zanu-PF in the harmonised elections, is desperate for an adverse report but observer after observer has endorsed the harmonised elections.

Mr Biti - who is on record saying he moves around in a daze in the wake of the devastating electoral loss - accused Mr Membe of having delivered the report without the endorsement of other regional countries that were part to the observer mission.

In an apparent attack on the mission, Mr Biti said Mr Membe had no business in Zimbabwe, saying he presented a report which was not endorsed by the region.

But Ms Martin said Sadc was aware of the final report presented by Mr Membe.

"Indeed, that report by Mr Membe was final," she said.

"That report is presented by the head of the mission who was Mr Membe after being prepared by a drafting team from the Troika of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security.

"In the case of Zimbabwe elections, the Troika had Tanzania, Mozambique and Namibia.

"On what grounds is the MDC-T raising such issues because the head of mission (Mr Membe) has authority to issue out the final report as he was appointed by the chairperson of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Co-operation, His Excellency Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania."

Ms Martin said when he presented the report, Mr Membe, who is also Tanzanian Foreign Affairs Minister, represented the entire Sadc family.

"SEOM was there on the ground when the elections were held and what happens is that after the release of the first report, members go back to their respective countries," she said.

"All the duties will now be carried out by the chairperson, who in this case is the head of mission and he is assisted by colleagues in the Troika, but he has the final say.

"That is why you saw during the Malawi Sadc Summit that the report presented there was endorsed for the simple fact that the mediator would have reassured that elections took place and the outcome was like that."

But Mr Biti, in an apparent effort to confuse issues, said Zimbabwe was still waiting for the production of the final Sadc report.

"That summary statement is not the final report of the Sadc Election Observer Mission," he said.

"The final report has not been produced and all Zimbabweans and Sadc itself are still waiting and demanding the production of that final report.

"It is important that it is produced so that hopefully, there is an honest and fuller analysis of the omissions and commissions that surrounded the elections.

"When you read Membe's statement, you note that all the findings and conclusions are derived from a report presented on August 2."

Mr Biti accused Mr Membe of presenting a report that was not endorsed by other regional countries.

"The Sadc observers did not meet to mandate Mr Membe to produce this report," he said.

"As a way forward, we are writing to Sadc requesting the final report and requesting Mr Membe to withdraw his statement. We have consulted with other countries and we are fully aware this was not a democratic report signed by all the countries. If you thought we had made progress during the Government of National Unity then we are back to square zero. African institutions have failed us and we reject this report."

In the final and comprehensive report, Mr Membe described the elections as free, peaceful, and generally credible and a reflection of the will of the people of Zimbabwe.

He dismissed claims that the failure to provide the electronic voters roll did not affect the elections, saying the world over and even in Tanzania; the electronic voters roll was not an issue, which is why it was not a requirement under the Sadc rules and guidelines governing democratic elections.

Mr Membe said the challenge that the Sadc Troika and Summit would be seized with was to engage the European Union and the US to remove the illegal sanctions they imposed on Zimbabwe.

In the report, Mr Membe said the observer mission noted some anomalies such as late provision of the voters roll and media polarisation.

The illegal sanctions imposed by western countries and pirate radio stations broadcasting from outside the country had an effect on the elections, he said.

Mr Membe called for an immediate end to illegal broadcasting on Zimbabwe by pirate radio stations saying emissaries would be sent to Western capitals where some of the pirate radio stations beam from.

Sadc, he said, would take the issue to those stations that operate within its territory.