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Zimbabwe's ex-president Robert Mugabe says he will not vote for his successor and train in Monday's elections. [19659004] In a surprise speech, Mr Mugabe said he could not support Zanu-PF's Emmerson Mnangagwa after being forced from office by the "I founded party."
"I can not vote for those who tormented me," he said. He was the one of the leading opposition leaders well
Mr Mnangagwa's main challenger is the candidate of the Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Nelson Chamisa
When asked by the BBC 's Fergal Keane if he would like to see Mr Chamisa win, Mr Mugabe, 94, indicated that he was the only viable candidate.
In response to the comments, Mr Mnangagwa, accused him of forming a boss of making a deal with the opposition.
"It is clear to all that Chamisa has forged a deal with Mugabe, we can no longer believe that its intentions are to transform Zimbabwe and rebuild our nation, "he said.
What else did Mr Mugabe say?
Speaking from his home in the capital, Harare, on Sunday, the president said he had been" sacked "as part of a military coup that he left office in order to "avoid conflict".
"I hope the choice of voting tomorrow will throw, thrust away the military government and bring back to constitutionality," he said.
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Reuters
Grace Mugabe accompanied her husband for his address in Harare on Sunday
Image copyright
Reuters
Mr Mugabe said that MDC leader Nelson Chamisa was the only viable candidate
Mr Mugabe also denied that, as president, he said it was "utter nonsense".
He suggested that ex-defense minister Sydney Sekeramayi should have taken over.
A new Zimbabwe
By Pumza Fihlani, BBC News, Harare
Robert Mugabe has hardly been seen or heard of since his unceremonious removal from the presidency last November. If Sunday's surprise news conference is anything to go by, the train statesman has not forgiven those who took his Zimbabwe away from him.
At times he appeared frail, but his words were cutting. He spent much of his time criticizing the current government by Mr Mnangagwa, ounce a close ally. He believes President Mnangagwa's rise to the top job was unconstitutional.
Perhaps the strongest sign of their fractured relationship was the revelation that he would not be voting for Zanu-PF, the party he helped found.
But Does Mr Mugabe still matter here in Zimbabwe? Not in any way he would appreciate; There is an overwhelming sense especially of young people who is facing the challenges facing Zimbabweans today. And while Zimbabwe might be more important to Mr Mugabe, there 'sa new Zimbabwe waiting to be born.
What is happening on Monday?
More than a million Zimbabweans are preparing to go to the polls to vote in the presidential, parliamentary and local elections. There are 23 candidates on the presidential ballot.
The country is expecting a high turnout of first-time voters, where the vote is expected to be key, with almost half of those registered under the age of 35. [19659004
These include issues of investment, education, healthcare and jobs – some estimates suggest that the unemployment rate in Zimbabwe is as high as 90%. 19659035] Media playback is unsupported on your device
The frontrunners in compensation these challenges are Zanu-PF's President Mnangagwa, 75, and the MDC's Mr Chamisa, 40. [19659004AnopinionpolllastweeksawtheMDCclosethegapwithZanu-PFfrom11percentagepointstothreewith20%ofvotersundecidedItwasonlythesecondoftwoopinionpolls
Election in numbers
- 5,635,706 people have re-registered to a new voters' roll;
- 43.5% of registered voters are under 35
- 10,985 polling stations
- 16 years since EU and US observers were allowed to monitor elections
