PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa on Sunday made a passionate plea to the church to promote unity to ensure peace and stability during by-elections set for March next year.
Speaking at the fifth edition of the annual National Thanksgiving and Dedication Service in Bulawayo, Mnangagwa said without peace, the nation will not witness development.
“I want to highlight that in 2022, the country will be holding various electoral processes. I appeal to the church and citizens in general to play an active role in ensuring that peace and stability prevail in our country,” Mnangagwa said.
While we agree with the president that the church has a role in fostering unity and peace in the country, we also strongly believe that the attitude of politicians has a bigger role in achieving and maintaining stability and tranquility in the nation.
Political party leaders must be on the forefront of preaching peace in the country ahead of the elections. Combined parties peace rallies should be held across the length and breadth of the nation.
We need quality polls this time around as we continue to nurture our nascent democracy.
Elections in this country have since 2000 been characterised by violence and hate speech. Their outcomes have been disputed mainly by the opposition as rigged and opaque.
As we inch closer to the parliamentary and council by-election in March 2021, the ruling Zanu PF and the opposition must campaign peacefully and in a transparent manner.
Equal opportunity and access to the public media should be granted to all participating parties, while there should be zero tolerance to any form of political violence and hate speech.
Impunity in the countdown, during and after the by-elections should never be countenanced.
The quality of elections must be beyond reproach if unity and stability are to prevail in the country.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission must execute its constitutional mandate in a transparent and accountable way, not giving room to manipulation of the polls and deal with electoral processes complaints swiftly and magisterially.
The electorate holds key in any election and must resist the temptations by politicians to stoke violence and disunity in the country.
Winners must be decided on the strength of their manifestos, nothing more, and nothing else.
