Chamisa to boycott Mnangagwa parliamentary address

The opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) says they will be boycotting the official opening of the first session of the tenth parliament on Tuesday where President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to set the tone for laws to be handled by the House of Assembly.

CCC spokesperson, Promise Mkhwananzi, said, "We are boycotting the processes that Mnangagwa wants us to undertake tomorrow on the basis of the fact that we as CCC do not recognise an election that put him there.

"The election was a shame, it did not go well.

"It fell abysmally short of the expected standards of a free and fair election in terms of the laws of Zimbabwe as well as in terms of SADC and AU protocols on free and fair elections.

"Accordingly, we are not attending that process. We want to send a clear message that there should be a free election in Zimbabwe under the auspices of SADC.

"So, that is the message that will be sending out tomorrow."

But Zanu-PF says it is surprised that CCC wants to boycott the official opening ceremony when they have representatives in the House of Assembly.

Joseph Tshuma, a member of the Zanu-PF Central Committee, says CCC is taking Zimbabweans for granted.

The opposition CCC claims that the August 23 harmonised elections were rigged in favour of Zanu-PF.

The Southern African Development Community, African Union and European Union said the polls fell short of regional and international standards.