The Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), Zimbabwe’s main opposition party, has demanded the “reinstatement of all our elected officials as per the 23rd of August 2023 disputed election.”

According to the party’s spokesperson, Promise Mkwananzi, CCC Members of Parliament and councillors who were recalled after the August 23, 2023 elections should be restored to their positions. In an X post seen by Pindula News, Mkwananzi said:

We demand the reinstatement of all our elected officials as per the 23rd of August 2023 disputed election, including all the original party deployments made at parliamentary and council levels.

Some context:

Zimbabwe held harmonized elections on 23-24 August 2023. However, the CCC rejected the results announced by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC). The Nelson Chamisa-led party alleged that the electoral body colluded with the ruling ZANU PF party to manipulate the results in favour of ZANU PF.

The CCC called for fresh elections, arguing that an independent body like the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU), or the United Nations (UN) should supervise the process instead of the perceived biased ZEC. The party sought intervention from the SADC, but the regional body recommended pursuing legal remedies through Zimbabwean courts.

In a surprising turn of events, Sengezo Tshabangu, who claims to be the interim secretary general of the CCC, recalled numerous MPs, Senators, and councillors from the party. Tshabangu argued that these individuals had ceased to be members of the party and had been imposed on the citizenry by CCC leader Chamisa.

CCC Demand:

The CCC’s demand for the reinstatement of elected officials sparked debate and criticism. Some questioned the logic of reversing a constitutional process, while others questioned the party’s participation in subsequent by-elections, which they viewed as an endorsement of the process. These discussions revealed differing perspectives on the way forward and emphasized the need to focus on the future.

Many people commented on Mkwananzi’s post and called it an oxymoron, which means it contained contradictory statements. Some said the party is not accepting the results of the 23 August 2023 at the same time wants its candidates elected in that election to be reinstated. 

Mkwananzi defended his statement by saying that the elections produced a disputed outcome and that the disputed outcome is at the centre of the disagreement and the path to legitimacy. 

Others disagreed with the CCC’s demand, saying that it was too late to reverse a constitutional process. They pointed out that the by-elections had already taken place, and it was better to focus on the future instead. There were also questions raised about how the CCC could ask for the reinstatement of officials elected in the August general elections when the party itself participated in the by-elections. Some people saw the CCC’s participation as an endorsement of the by-election process.

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