Govt Responds To Chamisa-led CCC's Demands For Electoral Reforms
Information deputy minister Kindness Paradza has said the government will not give in to Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa’s demands for electoral reforms.
In September this year, the CCC released a document containing seven (7) electoral reform pillars saying it was essential for the pillars to be implemented before the 2023 elections.
Responding to Chamisa’s Twitter post that a 2023 pre-election pact is the only way to go for the country to avoid a disputed poll outcome, Paradza said CCC must push for reforms through Parliament. He told NewsDay Zimbabwe:
If Chamisa wants electoral reforms, he has to work through Parliament. If the [Electoral Amendment] Bill goes to Parliament, it will go for public scrutiny through public hearings where, if he wants to make any submissions, he can do so through his Members of Parliament and supporters.
That is democracy in our view. But it does not have to be a demand because we do not succumb to demands. We are the ruling party and have been in power for 42 years and we do not succumb to demands from the opposition.
Chamisa, a former Minister of ICT, Postal and Courier Services during the Government of National Unity (GNU), said there are no genuine reforms in the ZANU PF government’s proposed electoral reforms by the Cabinet. He added:
A pre-election pact on reforms by all parties, civil society and stakeholders is key. Any unilateral political decision will produce a disputed and discredited national leadership.
The government last month announced that Cabinet had approved the principles of the Electoral Amendment Bill 2022.
Electoral stakeholders, including the opposition, say they were not consulted on the draft of the Electoral Amendment Bill 2022.
The Bill is silent on demands by the opposition and other independent election watchdogs.
