Chamisa lies again

Nqobile Tshili Bulawayo Bureau

CITIZENS Coalition for Change (CCC) president Mr Nelson Chamisa’s penchant for lying was exposed during an interview with South African broadcaster, SABC, after he claimed that his party’s failure to field candidates was due to Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) administrative glitches.

Chaos was the order of the day during the Nomination Court sitting last Wednesday when Mr Chamisa’s party candidates only started submitting their papers at 2pm in Bulawayo.

In other areas such as Gwanda, the party’s aspiring candidates submitted their papers 10 minutes before closing time which was 4pm.

Filing of nomination papers started at 8am across the country but CCC candidates could not file their papers on time as they were waiting for final lists of candidates which were being dispatched from Harare. In Bulawayo, the party’s candidates were still submitting their papers well into the night and even though the Nomination Court stopped accepting nomination papers at 4pm, it continued processing papers for those who had arrived before that time.

The opposition even failed nominate candidates for the Provincial Council in Bulawayo meaning Zanu PF is going to dictate the city’s development agenda.

Instead of admitting that his party was disorganised, probably not ready for the polls, Mr Chamisa, however shifted the blame from the opposition party.

Mr Chamisa is not new to lying to suit his narrative.

Ahead of the 2018 harmonised elections, he made headlines after falsely telling the electorate that he had a met former United States President Mr Donald Trump and told him that to move the country forward, they needed $15 billion.

While Mr Chamisa spoke glowingly about his party’s preparedness for the 23 August harmonised elections, Zanu PF has already claimed 78 local government seats unopposed as opposition parties failed to field candidates across some of the 1 970 wards countrywide.

In an interview with the SABC International Editor Sophie Mokoena, Mr Chamisa seemed to blame everyone but himself for his party’s failure to field candidates.

Asked to explain why CCC could not field candidates across available posts, Mr Chamisa said it was a sign that his party was winning.

“I’m sure you were listening to Zanu PF propaganda, we were not found wanting, if anything we were found winning. Because we won in a big way. We managed to field in all the constituencies, 210 constituencies with candidates representing the CCC, the citizens. We almost managed to field in almost all the wards, 1970 serve for a few where we had glitches, administrative glitches, not our own, especially by Zec and we are challenging that in court. So, we have done very well,” said Mr Chamisa.

He even claimed that his party did better than Zanu PF which managed to field candidates across all available seats.

“We are happy and we are excited that we have managed to cross the hurdle of having representation in all the constituencies. It is a feat that cannot be achieved by any political party, even Zanu PF with the support of the State were struggling. We did it and we won,” he said.

Mr Chamisa went on to claim that his party is directly funded by Zimbabweans only.

“We have not received a dime from any government in fact we will not be comfortable receiving any money because ours is an indigenous effort and we are happy with the commitment of the citizens to the project, we are grateful to Zimbabweans. That is why Zanu PF is so shocked because they thought we would be found wanting but we have been found winning,” he added.

Political analyst Mr Methuseli Moyo said Mr Chamisa’s interview exposed his character of always trying to portray himself being on top of the situation.

“Chamisa is very good at sounding bombastic, excited and confident prior to the polls, only to wail at the end. All fair minded people will admit that this time around ZEC was more than generous, allowing time for bungling candidates and parties to remedy issues. They never sought to disqualify or exclude anyone on a technicality. Those who failed have themselves to blame,” said Mr Moyo.

“As it is, not only his CCC, but other parties also failed to field candidates in a staggering 74 wards countrywide, allowing Zanu PF to win unopposed. So, the ineptitude is endemic and universal in the opposition.”

He said instead of trying to cast aspersions at the electoral management body, Mr Chamisa should focus on his party and allow institutions to execute their duties.

Mr Moyo said since Mr Chamisa is participating in the presidential election for the second time, it was expected that he would exude maturity in his conduct, but alas, his politics remains of students’ activists.

“Certainly, Chamisa has not matured at all. For me, he sounds the same Nelson Chamisa who was in our Student Representative Council during my student days at the Harare Polytechnic,” said Mr Moyo.

“To make matters worse, he has elbowed out all the mature politicians and replaced them with mostly former student leaders. For that reason, his party has failed to gain the sort of solidity and seriousness its successor, the MDC, was built on.”

Mr Moyo said Mr Chamisa’s revealed his true character of being a politician who is not honest.

“As for inexactitudes, Mr Chamisa has a record. Some of the comments in his SABC interview buttress that identity of his,” said Mr Moyo.