Citizen Coalition for Change (CCC) leader, Nelson Chamisa, says the United Nations should be allowed to supervise Zimbabwe’s 2023 general elections in order to avoid dispute outcome of the polls.
Addressing thousands of supporter at Nyamhunga Stadium in Kariba on Sunday, also urged his party activists to vote in big numbers with or without electoral reforms.
“We expect reforms to be done before elections but even if they refuse, go in numbers and vote to make rigging impossible like what happened in Zambia. I am talking to UN, SADC and AU because where we are going UN should be there to supervise our elections. Presidential results should be traceable from the polling station to the national command centre," said Chamisa.
Chamisa said presidential election results should also be announced at the polling stations soon after counting of the ballot papers.
“Presidential results should not be kept as a secret until they are announced. Presidential results should not take 5 to 6 days before a winner is declared like what is happening at the moment. They must be displayed at polling stations just like council and parliamentary results.”
Chamisa took a swipe at Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) for its lack of independence.
He fingered President Emmerson Mnangagwa as one of the people who has already manipulated the election results as he appointed electoral commissioners who were relatives o some of his colleagues.
“We are looking into the ZEC issue because Mnangangwa is staffing the commission with his colleagues’ relatives for fear of losing the elections but we do not care even if he becomes the chairperson (ZEC). We want to win this election, we want to change Zimbabwe, we want to win big as long as you vote in numbers,” said Chamisa .
Chamisa touched on issues that affect ordinary people saying the ill-treatment of Zimbabweans living in South Africa is a nightmare.
Zanu PF has already ruled out any possibilities of having elections being supervised by the United Nations.
ZEC has also dismissed as untrue reports of any form of rigging in Zimbabwean elections.