Disputed Election

Statement by Emily Tsungai Madamombe

Fellow Comrades, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all very much for turning out in large numbers and for exercising your right to vote and elect a leader of your informed choice. I would like to thank all the members who expressed confidence in me as a potential leader and voted for me for the position of Provincial Chairperson for the UK and Ireland External Assembly. I would like to say that your votes were sufficient for me to have been declared your dully elected Provincial Chairperson but as we all know by now, this was not the outcome that was announced by the presiding officer National Chairman Honourable Lovemore Moyo. Those of you who were present at the time of announcement which was well after midnight know that the result was contestable right away. I also immediately challenged the announcement because the laid down procedures for dealing with disputes and challenges that were read out to us by the National Chairman before the election were not followed.

Further Developments:

Since Saturday, I have received offers of positions. Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you that I considered all those options. Yes, there was an option to accept any of those positions and pretend that the injustices you suffered through the outcome of the elections did not take place at all. I would like to inform you that after extensive consultations and in line with your aspirations as voters, I made the decision that the campaign we all led was not a personal one. It was one for justice, transparency, accountability and most importantly, for the restoration of order and confidence in our party. On my part fellow comrades, this is not about political expedience or about getting a position through whatever means. This is about true democracy, the founding principle of the MDC Party. I feel that I cannot not accept the offers as this betrays my strong belief in the values and principles of our party of Excellence and my loyalty to you all.

The Way Forward:

While acknowledging that in any election there will be winners and losers, for me it is about how one wins or loses an election. Yes there are good losers and bad losers too. What I want to stress here is that when an election result is being disputed, one has a right to express their dissatisfaction with the process. That expression of dissatisfaction should not simply be dismissed as the actions of a bad loser by those who may have got into the positions illegitimately, as was pre-emptively announced by the National Chairman. As a contestant I have now taken the initial step to seek justice for myself and the people who voted for me. I have lodged with the Secretary General’s Office a notice of my intention to challenge the outcome of the provincial chairperson result and I will follow the due processes. It follows that while this result is being challenged, I have respectfully requested that Mr Tonderai Samanyanga should not be allowed to assume the position and role of the chairperson of the UK and Ireland External Assembly pending a full investigation and a satisfactory resolution into the matter. At this stage I would like to appeal for your co-operation and support in our collective effort to put an end to the culture of producing outcomes at elections that harbour serious legitimacy questions. This has been the cause for disunity within the province for years now and we cannot allow that to happen every time we hold elections. I appeal to our national Leadership to practice what we demand from Zanu Pf with regards to how our elections are conducted both at home and in the Diaspora.

Once again, I am humbled by your support and dedication to the struggle for a New Zimbabwe. I will remain a servant of the people and together we shall march into the Promised Land, a Free Zimbabwe.

I thank you.

Emily Tsungai Madamombe

Provincial Chairperson Candidate