On 11 December, in Chegutu’s Ward 22,
violence broke out during a Zanu PF
District Coordinating Committee (DCC)
elections process. The violence, which
involved Chegutu West Legislator Dexter
Nduna was over the transparency or lack of
it, of the internal voting process for
candidates to represent the party at district
level.
This was not an isolated event, as
countrywide, intra-Zanu PF violence was
witnessed during the party’s DCC election
processes.
For
example,
in
Mbire
District,
Mashonaland Central Province, there was
marked violence during the Zanu PF DCC
elections held on 5 December. Some party
members alleged there was rigging and
inclusion of dead people and others who
had relocated from the district on the
voters’ roll. This triggered violent clashes.
In addition to the violence, the Zanu PF
DCC elections also resulted in partisan
distribution of government inputs. One
example is when Masvingo North, Ward 1
Councillor
Kudakwashe
Murambiwa
distributed 5kgs of Pfumvudza maize seed
only to those who had voted in Zanu PF
DCC elections.
Across the political divide, as recorded by
ZPP, there were incidents of intra-party and
inter-party violence as the MDC-T – an
offshoot from the MDC Alliance - prepared
for its 27 December Congress.
In Mudzi North, Ward 10, MDC Alliance and
MDC-T supporters clashed on 21
December during a meeting presided over
by the MDC Alliance Mudzi District
Organizing Secretary Paddington Sirivha.
The meeting ended up violent with the
party’s former District Chairperson Peter
Chabveka being accused of having joined
the offshoot MDC-T.
The clashes were reported countrywide and
they peaked at the MDC-T Extra Ordinary
Congress held on 27 December in Harare.
In some of the scenes of the MDC-T
violence, which have since gone viral on
the internet, some of the congress
delegates can be seen physically and
verbally assaulting one of the MDC-T
presidential contestants Thokozani Khupe
and her supporters in what is a deliberate
and open attack on women’s participation
in politics as a whole.
A case of inter-party violence was recorded
in Mamina where Zanu PF youths led by
David Maburutse kicked to the ground,
pots of food that was being prepared by
MDC Alliance youths who were canvassing
for support to embark on a one million
march in the area. Although the police
were present, they could not intervene
resulting in food (meat stew) being soiled
on the ground. No arrests were made and
this act disturbed the proceedings of the
campaign.
All these incidents recorded by the ZPP
point to a growing culture of political
intolerance, which goes against the civil
and political rights that are guaranteed in
the Zimbabwe Constitution.
ZPP believes peaceful political contestation – as espoused in the Constitution and values
laid therein- is the only progressive way to ensuring everyone, regardless of sex, ethnicity,
tribe, and age, get their fair chance to enjoy their Constitutionally guaranteed civil and
political liberties and participate in Zimbabwe’s political landscape.
While we cannot dictate how political parties – being voluntary organisations that they are
5
– conduct their business, we strongly condemn the use of violence in any form, as this only
serves to perpetuate a culture of intolerance, which has no place in a country that is
supposed to be a democracy.