THE Election Resource Centre (ERC) has raised concern over the courts becoming a key player in the upcoming elections.
In a report that was unveiled in Harare on Wednesday during a Pre-Elections conference, ERC said that the nature and amount of electoral litigation in the 2023 election season is unprecedented.
“The litigation is emanating from all candidates, and an unprecedented amount from Zanu PF and its functionaries and proxies,” ERC said.
ERC said the unprecedented levels of electoral litigation “tell us that something is seriously wrong - because courts are platforms for dispute resolution, and that there is little to no faith in the management of elections outside judicial sanction
“The net effect is that courts are now deciding the election, that is, who participates and who does not, and ultimately who is elected and who is not. This is disenfranchising.”
Zec is a respondent in several cases over the way it handled the nomination exercise.
Self-exiled presidential candidate, Saviour Kasukuwere, is back and forth fighting to have his name included in the ballot after his disqualification.
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In an interview, Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum executive director, Musa Kika, said the involvement of courts in elections has a negative impact on the credibility of the polls.
“It is unfortunate that our courts are taking center stage in these elections particularly because in the context of Zimbabwe we cannot trust our courts to reindeer fair rulings on the basis of the law,” Kika said.
