Opinion / Columnist
Mavambo et al foot-stomping rejection of BVS sends political shock wave
28 Jul 2016 at 23:05hrs | Views
In a very rare moment of genius (common sense amongst this lot is so rare it is considered genius) a few of Zimbabwe's opposition parties have actually said something that is sensible. They have condemned the country's proposed computerized biometric voting system (BVS) as unworkable.
"Zanu PF and ZEC control the passwords and any override authority. These are the very people whom the Zimbabwean people do not trust. They can alter the data at any time. Remember whoever has the authority to add a voter`s data, can change or delete it and none of us can ever detect it," reads the Coalition of Democrats (CODE) statement.
CODE brings together a handful of Zimbabwe's many, many (28 contested the 2013 elections) opposition parties including MDC (Ncube), Simba Makoni's Mvambo/Kusile/Dawn and Elton Mangoma's Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe (RDZ). Whilst the nation and the whole world at large have largely ignored CODE as just a bunch of lunatics doing anything and everything just to be noticed. Well in condemning the BVS they have made themselves, for once, standout and be noticed!
ZEC launched BVS with the usual funfare, song and dance to silence all the critics for the Zanu PF regime's failure, once again, to hold free, fair and credible elections. ZEC went to great lengths to explain how the new system would be a significant improvement on the old although the commission failed to explain how BVS would stop some of the glaring voting irregularities such as opposition supporters' details being deliberately posted into constituency roll other the one they expected.
Both MDCT and PDP, two of the country better known opposition parties - they had some MP and Senators in power, not that they have ever accomplished anything even when the MDC had the majority during the GNU - have already come out in support of BVS. They ignored all those who said without implementing the far reaching democratic reforms first BVS will not stop vote rigging.
ZEC has already done some trial runs with BVS and so the regime is set to introduce the new system in the next elections, set for July 2018 - exactly two years away!
By condemning BVS CODE have really set themselves apart from MDCT and PDP who will now be forced to explain how indeed anyone is going to stop Zanu PF and ZEC adding, deleting and other vote rigging dirty data shenanigans on the new BVS! This presents a really difficult political decision for both MDCT and PDP; they have publically supported BVS and now they will be forced to flipflop. Flipflopping is bad enough even for a party like MDCT known for doing so but doing so at the behest of the "lunatic" fringe will make that a lot harder to swallow.
Yet both Biti and Tsvangirai will have no choice but come out and admit that BVS will do nothing to deliver free and fair elections. The longer they try to defend BVS the more ridiculous they will look. And if Zanu PF goes on to rig the next elections using the same dirty tricks they are been warned of now then this time their names will be proverbial "Mud!"
"A Biometric voting system will bring several other issues without any extra benefits. CODE therefore rejects the BIOMETRIC VOTERS ROLL," read the CODE statement, a pointed dagga in the back both Biti and Tsvangirai know they cannot ignore.
If both MDCT and PDP were to reject BVS that would be a pointed dagga forcing the dozy Mugabe to bolt upright! The prospect of him having to rely on the same dirty vote rigging tricks as he use last time especially when he has just quarrelled with the war veterans – the boots on the ground storm troopers who did all the donkey and dirty work!
BVS must have offered the tyrant more modern and technically advanced ways of rigging the elections. The prospect of having to revert to the old system and having to rely on the brainwashed morons likes of Jabulani Sibanda or Kudzai Chipanga with so many enemies demanding his fall must be really frightening even for someone like him with a hippopotamus thick political skin!
It is said that the beat of a butterfly's wings in Japan may be the innocent beginning of a deadly hurricane in North America! Mavambo et al may be the lunatic fringe of Zimbabwe politics, still their foot stomping rejecting of the BVS has send out a shock wave that will reverberate and amplify and end up causing the greatest political earthquake of our time in Zimbabwe!
"Zanu PF and ZEC control the passwords and any override authority. These are the very people whom the Zimbabwean people do not trust. They can alter the data at any time. Remember whoever has the authority to add a voter`s data, can change or delete it and none of us can ever detect it," reads the Coalition of Democrats (CODE) statement.
CODE brings together a handful of Zimbabwe's many, many (28 contested the 2013 elections) opposition parties including MDC (Ncube), Simba Makoni's Mvambo/Kusile/Dawn and Elton Mangoma's Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe (RDZ). Whilst the nation and the whole world at large have largely ignored CODE as just a bunch of lunatics doing anything and everything just to be noticed. Well in condemning the BVS they have made themselves, for once, standout and be noticed!
ZEC launched BVS with the usual funfare, song and dance to silence all the critics for the Zanu PF regime's failure, once again, to hold free, fair and credible elections. ZEC went to great lengths to explain how the new system would be a significant improvement on the old although the commission failed to explain how BVS would stop some of the glaring voting irregularities such as opposition supporters' details being deliberately posted into constituency roll other the one they expected.
Both MDCT and PDP, two of the country better known opposition parties - they had some MP and Senators in power, not that they have ever accomplished anything even when the MDC had the majority during the GNU - have already come out in support of BVS. They ignored all those who said without implementing the far reaching democratic reforms first BVS will not stop vote rigging.
ZEC has already done some trial runs with BVS and so the regime is set to introduce the new system in the next elections, set for July 2018 - exactly two years away!
By condemning BVS CODE have really set themselves apart from MDCT and PDP who will now be forced to explain how indeed anyone is going to stop Zanu PF and ZEC adding, deleting and other vote rigging dirty data shenanigans on the new BVS! This presents a really difficult political decision for both MDCT and PDP; they have publically supported BVS and now they will be forced to flipflop. Flipflopping is bad enough even for a party like MDCT known for doing so but doing so at the behest of the "lunatic" fringe will make that a lot harder to swallow.
Yet both Biti and Tsvangirai will have no choice but come out and admit that BVS will do nothing to deliver free and fair elections. The longer they try to defend BVS the more ridiculous they will look. And if Zanu PF goes on to rig the next elections using the same dirty tricks they are been warned of now then this time their names will be proverbial "Mud!"
"A Biometric voting system will bring several other issues without any extra benefits. CODE therefore rejects the BIOMETRIC VOTERS ROLL," read the CODE statement, a pointed dagga in the back both Biti and Tsvangirai know they cannot ignore.
If both MDCT and PDP were to reject BVS that would be a pointed dagga forcing the dozy Mugabe to bolt upright! The prospect of him having to rely on the same dirty vote rigging tricks as he use last time especially when he has just quarrelled with the war veterans – the boots on the ground storm troopers who did all the donkey and dirty work!
BVS must have offered the tyrant more modern and technically advanced ways of rigging the elections. The prospect of having to revert to the old system and having to rely on the brainwashed morons likes of Jabulani Sibanda or Kudzai Chipanga with so many enemies demanding his fall must be really frightening even for someone like him with a hippopotamus thick political skin!
It is said that the beat of a butterfly's wings in Japan may be the innocent beginning of a deadly hurricane in North America! Mavambo et al may be the lunatic fringe of Zimbabwe politics, still their foot stomping rejecting of the BVS has send out a shock wave that will reverberate and amplify and end up causing the greatest political earthquake of our time in Zimbabwe!
Source - Wilbert Mukori
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