Broad Alliance to protest 2010 polls

man of the broad alliance, a brainchild of the Christian Alliance, which give birth to the Save Zimbabwe Campaign, is demanding a new democratic constitution for the country. The spokesman said Mugabe’s surrender of his illegal plan would pave the way for a national constitutional conference.
Failure by Mugabe to make a national statement of surrender will leave us with no option but to intensify our multifaceted resistance to oppressive rule, a spokesman of the alliance told The Zimbabwean this week.
“Save Zimbabwe will do all that is possible in a democratic society to challenge the ruling Zanu (PF) party’s intentions to refuse the people of Zimbabwe the right to select leaders of their choice under a democratic constitutional dispensation.”
The spokesman said the broad alliance would soon organize prayer session as a prelude to the planned protests.
The broad alliance, which over the past month organized highly successful lunch hour “pots and pans” or “noise demonstrations” said it was harnessing a critical mass to confront Zanu (PF) over the joint poll plan which they described as “undemocratic.”
Official sources said President Mugabe was taking the broad alliance threats seriously and was well aware that previous national strikes by the opposition had been an overwhelming success.
Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa warned that the planned demonstrations, illegal under the country’s strict security laws, would be met with “the full wrath of the law.”
He said the opposition’s call for Zimbabweans to take to the streets meant they were bent on a campaign of violence and anarchy against the government intended to result in the overthrow of Mugabe’s office.
National Constitutional Assembly chairman Dr Lovemore Madhuku, who escaped an assassination attempt on his life last week after his house was firebombed by suspected State agents, reaffirmed his support for the strike against the “harmonization” of elections.
Promise Mkwananzi, the president of the Zimbabwe National Students Union said students fully backed the planned protests against Mugabe.
The Tsvangirai led MDC, the Democratic Party, United People’s Movement, United People’s Party, Zanu Ndonga, Zapu FP, Christian Alliance, ZimRights, ZCTU, ZESN, Crisis Coalition, Bulawayo Agenda, MISA, MMPZ, Bulawayo Dialogue and many other civic groups said they would heed calls for the anti-Mugabe protests.