Opposition hopes for numbers to unseat Mugabe

by MARCUS MUSHONGA
HARARE, (CAJ News) – ZIMBABWE’S biggest opposition has called on citizens to register in numbers and remove President Robert at next year’s elections.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) led by Morgan Tsvangirai made the call amid concern by rights groups there was reluctance among prospective voters to register.

The Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) said about 10 percent of the total 7 million prospective voters have so far registered during the Biometric Voters Registration (BVR) running from September 4 to January 15.

“This is why we (MDC) are encouraging people as politics is a game of numbers. Let’s register in numbers first. Let’s go and vote in our numbers,” MDC Deputy President, Thokozani Khupe, said.

She added, “Once we vote in our numbers, we will beat everything else. We want to make sure that the MDC wins. If we can garner a million votes who can say we didn’t win?” Khupe asked.

Khupe said the party was mobilising people to register so as to enhance their chances.

This is despite uncertainty around Tsvangirai’s participation in next year’s elections owing to ill-health but Khupe emphatically allayed fears.

“President Tsvangirai will be at State House (in 2018),” she said.

Khupe’s sentiments coincided with calls from Zimbabwe’s war veterans for Mugabe to hand over power to a successor.

Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mugabe’s deputy, and First Lady Grace Mugabe, are said to lead factions gunning to succeed Mugabe who nonetheless aims to contest in 2018. He has been in power since 1980, first as a prime minister.

– CAJ News