Zimbabwe: Country Holds Its Breath Over Election Results - AllAfrica.com

Ephraim NsingoHarare

Zimbabweans heard Lord'S Day nighttime that the consequences of this weekend's general elections would be declared from 06.00 local clip (04.00 GMT) on Monday.

This came amidst mounting fearfulnesses that the Republic Of Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's (ZEC) failure to uncover the result of the ballot earlier signaled additional attempts to rig the polls.

Previous ballots have got seen consequences issued within hours of voting.

In an proclamation on state telecasting about the clip when the result would be made known, ZEC President Saint George Chiweshe said there was nil untoward about unveiling the consequences on Monday.

"In other countries, it takes longer than that -- at modern times up to one week. There is nil curious about this election in Zimbabwe; the committee is a professional and constitutional body," he noted.

"The ground why we did this is because we have got got got to collate the presidential results."

However, Chiweshe's words were likely to have been dismissed by resistance members and activists, who have persistently accused the committee of being biased towards President Henry Martin Robert Mugabe and the opinion Republic Of Republic Of Republic Of Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Presence (ZANU-PF).

"Some rigging is going on somewhere, so they detain the proclamation to perfect it," said Lovemore Madhuku, president of the National Constitutional Assembly, a civic organic structure that anterooms for constitutional reform in Zimbabwe.

In an earlier subscribe of agnosticism about the ZEC, the chief cabal of the resistance Motion for Democratic Change (MDC) announced that it was on path to win the elections, based on consequences already displayed at about a 3rd of polling stations; the political party claimed it was leading with 67 percentage of votes.

State security military units had banned pre-empting the ZEC on the result of the Mar. Twenty-Nine elections. But, the MDC cabal -- led by Lewis Henry Morgan Tsvangirai -- argued that the consequences cited were already in the public domain, and that its proclamation was to guard against ballots being tampered with at a national bid Centre where consequences are finalised.

Amongst the functionaries reacting angrily to the proclamation was Information Curate Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, World Health Organization described the claims of triumph as "speculation and lies".

"We have got got the Republic Of Zimbabwe independent electoral commission; only that committee denotes the results, so before that functionary proclamation I don't comment," he said.

"Biti and the MDC are celebrated for guess and lies peddling in the state and causing unneeded mayhem here," Ndlovu added, in mention to Tendai Biti, secretary-general of MDC-Tsvangirai, who addressed the news conference Lord'S Day where the MDC announced its lead.

The cabal have reportedly claimed additions even in the states of Mashonaland West, Mashonaland Central and Masvingo -- seen as Mugabe strongholds.

"For us farm workers, this Marks the end of tyranny. We have got got suffered a lot," said a laborer who works at Profusion Farm Orchard, a place in Mashonaland Occident appropriated by Deputy Young Person Development and Employment Creation Curate Jesus Kasukuwere under Zimbabwe's controversial land redistribution policy.

"Since this adult male took over the farm, our lives have been a nightmare. He do not pay on time, but he now makes us work far more than than we used to. Jesus is fortunate he did not competition here, otherwise we would penalize him heavily for his sins."

Kasukuwere contested the Saddle Horse Charles Darwin South seat, also in Mashonaland Central; according to preliminary consequences released by the opposition, he have managed to reserve his seat.

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Starting in 2000, authorities oversaw the ictus of farms owned by minority whites. Supposedly for transplantation of landless blacks, the enterprise have seen a figure of places taken over by high-ranking officials. It is also considered a cardinal factor in the economical collapse of Zimbabwe, which now combats rising prices of about 100,000 percent, unemployment of up to 80 percent, and widespread deficits of food, combustible and foreign currency. Once efficient societal services in the Southern African state are crumbling.

"There are certain countries which had been declared lasting ZANU-PF strongholds, and to have got the resistance sweeping through in those countries is enough grounds that -- without rigging -- the opinion political party will emerge empty handed," said political analyst Toilet Makumbe.

However, fearfulnesses of rigging are widespread. In the run-up to Saturday's vote, the opposition, along with assorted rights groupings and think-tanks, highlighted an array of factors that have got spoilt the polls, ranging from bullying of the opposition, prejudice in the state-controlled media and a rickety voters' axial rotation to use of nutrient assistance and the exclusion of election perceivers from states critical of Zimbabwe.

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