…MP Togarepi fights, wins back Gutu South constituency
…Senior Govt officials dismiss final report
TellZim Reporter
MASVINGO – The final delimitation report that was handed over to President Emmerson Mnangagwa by the Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC) chairperson Justice Priscila Chigumba is said to have glaring errors that exposed extreme political influence and gerrymandering by the ruling party Zanu PF.
The delimitation report has since widened the rift between two Zanu PF factions, with the one inclined to Vice President Constantino Chiwenga on cloud nine amid claims that it heavily influenced the whole process, a development which puts the credibility of ZEC at stake.
Gerrymandering
Suspicions of gerrymandering are evidenced by glaring errors and decisions by ZEC during the constituencies’ boundaries delimitation. In Gutu district, ZEC initially dissolved Gutu South in its preliminary delimitation report, only to overturn the decision after the incumbent Gutu South MP Pupurai Togarepi put them to task when he chaired the Parliament AdHoc Committee that analyzed the delimitation preliminary report.
Togarepi raised pertinent question that, according to reliable sources that confided to TellZim, forced ZEC to bring back Gutu South in the final report. The Zanu PF Chief whip questioned the criteria that the electoral body used to dissolve Gutu South ahead of other constituencies in the district when the constituency had a large number of registered voters than other constituencies like Gutu North.
Sources revealed to TellZim that ZEC reacted to the Parliament analysis report by dissolving Gutu North instead, and brought back Gutu South in its final report that Justice Chigumba submitted to President Mnangagwa recently.
While it is known that the delimitation process requires experts who can use maps, GPS and coordinates to come up with new constituency boundaries, reliable sources in Zanu PF, analysts and experts said the process can be gerrymandered by influencing the professionals so that they can adjust the boundaries in order to appease the interests of the ‘invisible hand.’
“There is high suspicion of gerrymandering; and the way a certain political party is bragging about having influenced the delimitation process is boggling. The disagreements by the ZEC commissioners is a clear testimony that there is likely an invisible hand behind the scenes that is influencing the whole process,” said one analyst.
Now that Gutu North has been dissolved in the final delimitation report, powerful Zanu PF political figures in Gutu district are back on the table strategizing for next possible moves in the event that President Mnangagwa gazetted the proposed boundaries ahead of 2023 general elections.
The district has too many powerful political figures including Senator Lovemore Matuke who is the Zanu PF secretary for security, Minister of Mines and Mining Development Winston Chitando (Gutu Central MP), Yeukai Simbanegavi, the deputy minister of National Housing and Social Amenities (Gutu North MP), Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education Prof Amon Murwira (Non-Constituency MP), Women’s league national member Beritha Chikwama (Gutu East MP) and the national youth deputy chair John Paradza (Gutu West MP) as well as Togarepi the Zanu PF chief whip (Gutu South MP).
Simbanegavi is now set to move from the dissolved Gutu North and contest for the Gutu West seat, whilst the incumbent Gutu West MP Paradza will move to contest for the youth quota seat.
Sources in Zanu PF told TellZim that Paradza is already lobbying for the youth quota seat and is strategically positioned to get it as he is the most senior youth league member in the province and second nationally.
If the new boundaries are used in the next elections, Gutu will be left with only four constituencies instead of five, though it is not yet clear whether the new boundaries will be used or not.
Furore over the final delimitation report
There has been apparent confusion following ZEC Chairperson Priscilla Chigumba’s submission of some documents to President Emmerson Mnangagwa on February 3, 2023 which according to some senior government officials and media reports were the final delimitation report. Government however, made a sudden u-turn and claimed the report Justice Chigumba submitted to the President was not the final one. Permanent Secretary in the ministry of Media, Information and Broadcasting Services Nick Mangwana was the first to dismiss the report as not being the final delimitation report through his twitter account. His post contradicted the State media which was present at the event when the report was submitted, and more importantly, which he superintends over. Sources in government and Zanu PF said Nick is playing factional politics.
“The report that was submitted by ZEC chair is the final draft. However, a faction linked to President Mnangagwa feels the report is not favorable to them and they want ZEC to further review it that’s why people like Nick (Mangwana) are now saying the report is not the final one. A faction aligned to Vice President Chiwenga however, is insisting the report is the final one and there is no going back,” the source said.
Constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku said the buck stops with ZEC if there are any issues regarding elections, as it is the one with the constitutional mandate to manage elections and electoral processes.
Prof Madhuku said if President Mnangagwa does not comply with the timelines, then it was up to ZEC to take action and ensure that elections are run smoothly.
“The obligation is on ZEC as an independent body to inform the nation by an appropriate notice. If you are the ZEC and you have gone to the President to give him a final delimitation report which you know that in terms of the constitution it has implications, you must make an announcement to the country in that regard.
“The way out of what appears to be uncertainty is for ZEC to make it clear that they submitted a final report to the President—there is no limit to the number of times ZEC can confirm that it submitted the final report,” Prof Madhuku said.
He added that in case the President fails to comply with the requirements of the law to gazette a final delimitation report, ZEC should then take steps to make sure that he complies.
“ZEC is responsible for contacting elections according to the law. If the President doesn’t gazette and the ZEC believes it has complied it means ZEC will not be able to do its work because of not having the delimitation report.
“ZEC must be preparing for elections; there are so many things it should be doing now in anticipation of the elections and those things are dependent on these boundaries, so it has to be sure which boundaries it is using for the next elections.
“Should ZEC believe that the President has not done what he was supposed to, it is the responsibility of ZEC to take the President up legally because they are the ones with the duty to conduct elections. Let ZEC go to court or use other machinery because they are the ones with that duty,” Prof Madhuku said.
Other constitutional law experts also concurred that the law does not provide for any other delimitation report that is not the final to be handed to the President, contrary to what government said that ZEC had submitted a revised preliminary delimitation report not the final one.
The final report should be gazetted by February 25, 2023 for the new boundaries to be used in the 2023 harmonized elections, giving the six months window period before elections in accordance with the constitution.
“The law is very clear; the report that was submitted to the President is the final report and it is expected to be gazetted by February 25, 2023. All this noise we are hearing are attempts to influence ZEC to change the report in favour of Zanu PF,” he said.
