Tsvangirai has chosen to contend the second round of elections after previously saying he would not run again because he won the first vote outright.
Tsvangirai said Zimbabweans would feel betrayed if he did not run and allowed Mugabe to become president again by default.
“I shall return to Zimbabwe to begin a victory tour. Some might say this term ‘victory’ is cold and callous, given the hardships endured by the people. But the people are victorious and they are being punished for their victory,” he said in Johannesburg, where he has spent much of the past six weeks. “We must free ourselves from those who would steal victory from fellow brothers and sisters by using guns, sticks and screwdrivers,”
Tsvangirai made a number of demands that are unlikely to be met, including that the ballot be held within the next fortnight. The government has said it could take months.
The MDC leader has switched his position several times on the issue of a second round, after claiming victory against Mugabe in the March 29 vote with 50,3% of the vote. The state-run election commission declared Tsvangirai the winner with about 48% of the vote, to 43% for Mugabe, making a run-off necessary as neither won an outright majority.
Tsvangirai said his party had a difficult decision to make over whether to participate, given what it says was the rigging of the first round and the continuing violence against opposition supporters.
He said the MDC feared he could lose because the ruling Zanu-PF’s attacks on his supporters — which have left more than 30 dead and thousands injured — would prevent large numbers of people from voting and discourage many others.
The MDC appears to have finally decided that it could not walk away from the contest, not least because it would make it appear Tsvangirai was shying away from a one-on-one battle with Mugabe.
Post published in: News