No more mumbo-jumbo, Chamisa must announce either credible plan to stop Zanu PF rigging or boycott until reforms

The A1 problem in Zimbabwe is the failure to hold free, fair and credible elections which is why the nation has been stuck with this corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF regime for 42 years with the tragic economic and political consequences we can see. It has taken decades to understanding the link between rigged elections and bad governance but thank God, the penny has drop!  Zanu PF is rigging these by-elections and, even more significantly, is rigging the upcoming 2023 harmonised elections. By participating in these flawed elections MDC/CCC are giving the process some modicum of credibility and thus giving the results legitimacy and thus help perpetuate the Zanu PF dictatorship.The A1 question Nelson Chamisa and his CCC friends must answer without any equivocation is "How are you stopping Zanu PF rigging the elections?"

The failure to answer the question will lead to one equally clear-cut course of action: do not participate in the flawed elections. Participating in the flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy is insane, especially after 42 years of rigged elections.

This is not the first time MDC/CCC leaders have been told it is insane to participate in flawed elections; SADC leaders told them to their faces in June 2013.

"In 2013 the Maputo Summit, in June 2013, before the elections, the Maputo Summit was all about having the elections postponed – the SADC summit. I went there," Dr Ibbo Mandaza, Director of SAPES, told Journalist Violet Gonda.

"I was there at the Summit and Mugabe pretended to agree to a postponement of the elections. If you recall, the postponement was based on the need to reform at least electoral laws.

"And after that Summit, Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, all of them were called to a separate meeting by the Heads of State of SADC in the absence of Mugabe, that same evening. And they were told; I was sitting there outside the room with Mac Maharaj; they were told 'if you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done'."

Of course, Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends knew that Zanu PF was rigging the elections and that boycotting the elections was the only rational thing to do. Tsvangirai and company ignored the SADC leaders' advice and participated in the 2013 elections because of greed, as David Coltart, himself an MDC Minister in the 2008 to 2013 GNU and senior member of CCC, confessed.

"The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn't now do the obvious - withdraw from the (2013) elections," wrote Senator Coltart in his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe.

"The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility."If the failure to form a coalition in 2013 was the excuse for participating then MDC should have boycotted the 2018 elections because four of the main MDC factions did form a coalition, MDC Alliance (MDC A). Greed got the better of them and they participated in the elections even when it was clear ZEC had failed to produce something as basic a verified voters' roll!

"MDC A has stringent measures to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections!" boasted Nelson Chamisa, the MDC A Presidential candidate, dismissing call to boycott the 2018 elections. It was all just hot air, mumbo-jumbo, of course. Zanu PF blatantly rigged the 2018 elections just as the party is poised to rig the 2023!David Coltart's half-hearted confession that greed was stopping MDC/CCC doing the obvious thing and stop participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy is the nearest to a mea culpa of MDC sold out by failing to implement even one reform during the 2008 to 2013 GNU and are selling out by participating in flawed elections.

The overwhelming majority of ordinary Zimbabweans had no clue the 2008 to 2013 GNU was first and foremost about implementing the democratic reforms to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections and hence the reason the nation failed to even register MDC leaders' blatant betrayal in failing to implement even one reform.

Very few Zimbabweans even heard about the SADC leaders ‘If you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done!' ultimatum to MDC leaders much less understand the consequences of disregarding it.

Time and the tragic suffering brought on by the country sinking deeper and deeper into economic and political despair has forced many Zimbabweans to sit up and listen. Time and suffering are the best cure for ignorance.

In the late 1990s, the people of Zimbabwe finally realised that as long as Zanu PF enjoyed the carte blanche powers to rig elections and remained in power the country's relentless march into economic ruin and political paralysis was unstoppable. They have risked life and limb to elect Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends of the understanding the party would deliver the democratic changes the nation was dying for.

After 22 years, 5 of which in the GNU, MDC leaders have failed to bring about even one democratic change. What is clear is Tsvangirai and company had no clue what the changes were much less how they would be implemented. None!

And so, with the country sinking deeper and deeper into the economic and political abyss the ordinary Zimbabweans have been forced to put the meat on the bone. It is not just democratic change the nation wants but more specifically democratic change to stop Zanu PF rigging elections!

Tomorrow, Sunday 20th February 2022, Nelson Chamisa must either announce a credible plan to stop Zanu PF rigging elections or confirm that CCC will not be participating in any more of these flawed and illegal elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy. After 42 years of rigged elections enough is enough of this greed and insanity!