via Council poll results dismissed as “comical” | SW Radio Africa By Tererai Karimakwenda
Results from the July 31st council elections, that were finally released Thursday, have been dismissed by both MDC formations as a joke, with ZANU-PF claiming landslide victories in a majority of local councils countrywide.
According to figures released by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), candidates representing Robert Mugabe’s party now dominate the country’s rural and urban councils, having won 1,493 out of a total 1,958 wards. The MDC-T won 442.
The numbers translate to a 76% ZANU PF majority in local councils, a greater landslide than the 61% Robert Mugabe claimed in the disputed presidential poll. “ZANU-PF completed its rout of MDC-T”, the state run Herald newspaper announced, boasting of its master’s victory.
But both MDC formations were quick to dismiss the figures, insisting the results are a reflection of the wider manipulation of ballots by ZEC and ZANU PF.
Abednico Bhebhe, MDC-T deputy National Organising Secretary, said their party dismisses the whole election process as a fraud. He explained that focusing on just the local government would legitimize a process that was fraught with irregularities.
“As we have said the party that claims to have won did not win this harmonized election. They are not even celebrating. They stole the votes. We ask the simple question, if you live in a community and know that you all voted for party A, why would the results announced then be different,” Bhebhe told SW Radio Africa.
He added that in provinces like Manicaland and Masvingo, the MDC-T won overwhelming majorities in 2008. But 5 years later ZANU PF is claiming a landslide in those areas, when nothing has changed.
With ZANU PF now in control of both houses of parliament and local government, many Zimbabweans are extremely concerned about the future.
COMMENTS
A joke my foot. Have you forgot you lost because of your boss’s womanising and stealing and corruption of your Councillors. Did you think we were not watching. Makanzwa butter. Mavekungoti pamunhondo pamusasa . Maiwee its pitiful.
All he did was exactly what Mugabe did except that he did it whilst his wife was still alive and suffering from cancer. The biggest thief of Municipal land is Ignatius Chombo. How did he get so rich after being made Minister of local Government. Where is all the diamond revenue. Zanu PF has stolen it, you Sir are one eyed fool and justifier of grand larceny by Zanu PF.
Musa needs a brain surgery and implant so he can think
WIFE/HUSBAND SNATCHERS, GO SCOTFREE.
the truth is we are tired of MDC corruption and inefficiency in council n central government. Abednico must know that we have realised how useless Tsvangirai and team are. we did not vote for them and we do not want them. in 2008 they benefited from our protest vote against zanu. that will not happen again.
You are right. Zanu-PF will not allow another vote. So whether you voted for them yourself, OR a helpful armed policeman took the voting slip off you, insisted you were illiterate and cast it for Zanu-PF, OR you died 30 years ago but felt the need to rise from the grave and vote for the party responsible for your death, OR you were turned away at the polling station but the ZEC cast a vote for you anyway, randomly and without favor for Zanu-PF, OR a bus took you to several polling stations that day and at each one you could only vote for Zanu-PF, OR you did actually vote MDC but hey, numbers can be confusing so you just trust the completely competent ZEC (who do a marvelous job and are in no way partisan) to report the correct figures. Whatever happened, you can look forward to international isolation, collapse of the financial sector, broadening waistlines and ostentatious displays of wealth from a party that espouses socialism, food handouts from the UN, disappearing activists, regular beatings from rampaging soldiers, and an unsustainable rise in extortion payments to traffic police. And if I were you I would never mention the word ‘vote’ again, or in five years time your corpse will be ‘discovered’ in a mineshaft as ‘proof’ of evil white colonist excesses 40-odd years ago.