The Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC) said it will not share the names of members who were nominated during the ongoing Consensus Candidate Selection process to protect them from victimisation by ZANU PF, especially in rural areas.
CCC deputy spokesperson Gift Siziba told journalists on Thursday that after the party’s nomination process, a vetting process was conducted which will be followed by manifesto presentations.
He said the presentations are set for this Saturday and Sunday, with CCC’s final list of council and parliament candidates set to be announced soon. Said Siziba:
We are dealing with a brutally callous, indifferent regime that is in panic and one of its manner of manipulation is the harvest of fear, the use of fear against those who differ with the state or President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration.
It is without doubt that citizens have subscribed to the citizen’s movement and are ready to represent the party from various angles however one of the challenges we have faced during this process is this harvest of fear particularly in the countryside.
It is because of that strategic necessity that we have not publicly released the names of those that have been nominated in the countryside because ZANU PF has deployed violence as a tool to try to influence our people to withdraw from nominations and the process.
Remember the election has not been declared, and the nomination court has not been sat. We have agreed to protect our people.
You know in Zaka one of our candidates was abducted and tortured.
Elections in Zimbabwe in the past two decades have been characterised by politically motivated violence.
Opposition party members and supporters have been targeted by ruling ZANU PF party supporters and security forces.
This has led to concerns about the fairness and transparency of elections in the country.
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