Tense Count as Zimbabwean rivals demand electoral victory



[ad_1]

Zimbabwe's rival presidential candidates both claimed that they were heading towards electoral victory, establishing a tense account in the country's first vote since Robert Mugabe's ouster.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa said his party Zanu-PF was receiving "extremely positive" data, while opposition leader Nelson Chamisa said the MDC party was "making a big splash".

The charges related to a disputed outcome of the historic elections, raising the prospect of competing fraud allegations and a possible out-of-vote in September – required if no candidate wins at least 50% of the votes in the polls. first round.

The Zanu-PF has held power in Zimbabwe since the independence of British colonial rule in 1980, and the victory of the opposition

Analysts said that it was not necessary. It was unclear whether the military generals of the country, who ousted Mugabe and brought Mnangagwa to power last year, would accept a victory of the M

The defeat of the ruling party would probably lead to "a denunciation of the election by the administration of Mnangagwa and the possibility for the army to intervene to secure the power of Zanu-PF ", the IMC based in London. council said.

Anxiously waiting for the results

"I'm scared – will there be troubles?" Stone Sibanda, a 39-year-old taxi driver in Harare, told AFP. "It's a very sensitive time, everyone is anxious."

The turnout was about 75% before polls closed Monday night after a day of peaceful voting

expected Tuesday, and full results are expected for Saturday

In a polling station in the capital Harare, officials counted large stacks of ballots using gas lanterns and candles late in On Monday night, registered voters would be invited to return to the polls to vote in the second round of presidential elections on September 8.

But Mnangagwa, 75, Mugabe's former right-hand man, was confident in a first-round victory

"The information of our representatives on the ground is extremely positive! Waiting patiently for official results under the constitution, "said Mnangagwa on Twitter

Chamisa, 40, who raised allegations of election fraud several times during the campaign, was also optimistic, saying that his MDC was ready to train the next government.

"Winning in a resounding way … We did very well," he said on Twitter

The Zimbabwean electoral authority, much criticized, said Tuesday that the vote n & # Had not been rigged – even though the account was not yet

"We are absolutely convinced that there was no rigging … at the Electoral Commission in Zimbabwe, we will not steal the choice of leaders, we will not reverse their will, "said Priscilla Chigumba, president of the ZEC

Mugabe, 94, whose 37-year-old authoritarian regime held power through elections violent and fraudulent On the other hand, he voted in Harare alongside his wife Grace after a surprise press conference at his home on Sunday where he called on voters to reject Zanu-PF.

The EU quotes "deficiencies"

Observers of the European Union's formerly banned elections, present for the first time in years , said their participation seemed high but that they had been warned. 19659002] "There are gaps that we need to check in. We do not know yet whether there was a trend or whether it was a matter of bad organization in some polling stations, "said Monday to AFP Elmar Brok, chief observer of the EU

. Mnangagwa was clearly the election favorite, benefiting from tacit military support, loyal state media and ruling party controls over government resources.

But Chamisa, a young lawyer and pastor who distinguished himself during the election campaign, sought to take advantage of the enormous youth vote.

The new government must tackle mbad unemployment and a shattered economy by the farms under Mugabe, the collapse of agriculture, hyperinflation and l '. outflows investments.

Previously, health and education services were in shambles and millions of people fled abroad to look for work.

He had sworn to clean up the government and attract foreign investment to create jobs after the isolation and systematic corruption of the Mugabe era.

In 2008, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew from the presidential elections against Mugabe. the state has claimed the lives of at least 200 of its supporters.

* To follow the latest news on Zimbabwe elections REGISTER FOR HELLO
AFRICA NEWSLETTER

FOLLOW News24 Africa on Twitter and Facebook.

[ad_2]
Source link