Nelson Chamisa, the leader of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), has explained why his party chose not to challenge the results of the 23 August elections in the Constitutional Court.
There were initial signs that Chamisa’s party might take this legal route to contest the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission’s declaration of Zanu PF’s Emmerson Mnangagwa as the duly elected president.
However, the opposition party ultimately decided against pursuing a court case. This decision allowed Mnangagwa to proceed with his swearing-in and inauguration on Monday. Chamisa has now shed light on their rationale for avoiding legal action.
A Calculated Decision
According to Chamisa, they refrained from going to court because they anticipated an unfavourable outcome. He likened the court process to a futile endeavour, saying that it would be like going in circles.
“Well, there is no need for us to go to the court. The SADC is a court. The court of public opinion has already made a determination that this election is a sham. There is no need for us to waste time by ploughing the same field twice and we have been down this road. You know in 2018 we went to the court and we know the disposition and attitude of the court. So we don’t want to waste time. We want to resolve issues. This is a political issue. It’s an electoral matter and there are remedies beyond just wasting time through going round and round in circles. We need to resolve this issue and there has to be a political will and political will shall be there. We have a million options to pursue to make sure that the issue of elections in Zimbabwe is resolved,” Chamisa said.
The Path Forward: Engaging with the People
When asked about their next steps, Chamisa disclosed that his party is actively engaging with Zimbabweans. He hinted at peaceful and constitutional protests, emphasizing the need for a legitimate government. Chamisa stated,
“Well, of course, we are engaging Zimbabweans. Zimbabweans are very clear. They understand where we are going. We are very clear that we will make sure that we will express ourselves peacefully, constitutionally until there is a legitimate government in this country. As we speak, there is no legitimate government in Zimbabwe. There is a disputed and a self-declared, through ZEC, President and that must be corrected. Otherwise, this country cannot move because there is an illegitimate government.”
Dispelling Claims of Missing V11 Forms
Chamisa dismissed claims that the lack of V11 forms, which would have supported their claim of winning the 2023 Presidential elections, prevented them from going to court. Although he didn’t directly confirm whether they possessed all the V11 forms, Chamisa defended his party’s organization and expressed readiness to die for change, saying,
“Anybody can say anything. The bottom line is that we managed to win this sham election. You can’t say we are disorganised when we have the number of MPs we have managed to have in a disputed, in a very unfree and unfair election. When we have won the way we have won. When we have millions of supporters who supported us. That’s not evidence of a disorganised party. We are very organised and we are happy that the people of Zimbabwe believe in us and they are very clear that time is coming and change is coming to Zimbabwe. It doesn’t matter who chooses to abandon us and not give the solidarity. At the end of the day we know that nobody can stop a time whose moment has come, Change is coming to Zimbabwe and we will fight for it and we are ready to die for it.”
Source iHarare
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