Zimbabwe is set to hold its elections as opposition parties warn that the vote could be skewed and the country faces high inflation and a decline in women politicians.
A supporter of the country's ruling party, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), said they were hopeful it would rule the country forever. The remarks were made while waiting in a long line for a free T-shirt emblazoned with Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa's face.
Zimbabwe Presidential Elections
Despite the calls for the governing party to remain in power, many residents in the African country want a change in the current political environment. The nation is going into its hotly contested general elections that will be held on Wednesday.
Mnangagwa has been canvassing to win a second term by giving residents not just free shirts but also free chicken meals and loaves of bread and providing all-night concerns. The cost of such things has skyrocketed in Zimbabwe as it continues to experience one of the highest inflation rates in the world, as per NPR.
On top of the giveaways, the run-up to the country's vote has seen some of the violence and intimidation tactics that Zimbabweans are familiar with during election season. Additionally, political opposition members and supporters have called out an uneven playing field in the races for the presidency, parliament, and town councils.
They argued that the situation favors Mnangagwa and ZANU-PF and added that it could risk another disputed vote and potentially result in unrest. The president, an 80-year-old former spy chief, came to power through a coup in 2017 that ousted longtime leader Robert Mugabe. The former also declared victory in a disputed election the year after.
Almost a dozen presidential candidates are in the race for the country's highest position. The incumbent's main opposition is 45-year-old Nelson Chamisa of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), who 2018 narrowly lost to Mnangagwa.
During a press conference held in Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, the Bishop of Gweru Catholic Diocese and Justice and Peace Chairperson under the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference, Rudolf Nyandoro, called for a peaceful election, according to the Vatican News.
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Decline in Women Politicians
He said that voting is viewed as a duty for all to contribute to the country's common good. Nyandoro added that it was also an opportunity for every person to participate directly in the nation's governance.
The situation also comes as more than half of Zimbabwe's roughly 6.5 million registered voters are women. However, female residents have been turned into nothing more than cheerleaders in the political environment.
No women were included among the 11 presidential candidates announced in June by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC). Back in 2018, when the presidential candidates were announced, there were four women.
This year, two female presidential hopefuls, Elisabeth Valerio of United Zimbabwe Alliance (UZA) and Linda Masarira of the Labour, Economists, and African Democrats (LEAD), were excluded from the vote. The reasons were for late submission of nomination papers and late payment of nomination fees, respectively, said Aljazeera.
