No rigging in Zim: Madhuku

Lovemore Zigara Midlands Correspondent
NATIONAL Constitutional Assembly (NCA) leader and University of Zimbabwe law lecturer, Professor Lovemore Madhuku, has said elections in the country have never been rigged and are held in line with the country’s laws. Addressing students at the Midlands State University during a public lecture on the importance of constitutionalism and the rule of law in Zimbabwe’s current socio-economic context on Friday, Madhuku said in the 2013 general elections, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) performed its duties in accordance with the country’s laws.

He ruled out any rigging.

“In our country when it comes to election rigging, no one really knows what it means to rig an election. If you go by the law, there are very few instances when the law isn’t being respected like not giving other political parties space or enough space but the law here is followed,” said Madhuku.

“Maybe the law may not be good but they follow the law. For instance, people in the Diaspora aren’t allowed to vote and this is in accordance with the law but in political circles some want to call it rigging but that’s different because the law isn’t giving them the right to vote.”

He said people who are complaining about vote rigging are ignorant of the law and any aggrieved parties should push to have some laws changed. The remarks by the NCA leader fly in the face of the MDC – T claims that the 2013 elections, which were resoundingly won by Zanu PF, were rigged.

Zanu PF trounced the MDC-T with more than two thirds majority in parliament and President Robert Mugabe secured over 61 percent of the vote to Morgan Tsvangirai’s 34 percent.