The party says the move by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is suspicious and is convinced that it is meant to dilute the MDC vote.
“We are not happy with the decision by ZEC to deploy teachers outside the wards in which they registered as voters. Consideration should have been made to ensure they are able to vote in their respective areas by deploying them there,” Obert Tachi Ncube, MDC-T Midlands Provincial Director of Elections, told The Zimbabwean.
He added: “This problem is not limited to the Midlands, but has become national. Teachers are perceived as sympathisers of the MDC, and we suspect that, that might be the reason why they have been moved away from their wards.”
He estimated that if ZEC did not reverse its decision, the MDC-T Midlands province would lose about 17,000 potential votes “if it is true that teachers and most civil servants are loyal to our party, which I think is the case”.
“At the national level, the figure would be in the region of about 200,000 and that is a high figure. This is a clear case of rigging that observers need to take cognisance of. Besides, it is unconstitutional to disenfranchise Zimbabwean citizens by taking them away from their wards,” he added.
The Electoral Act stipulates that voters must cast their votes in the wards where they registered.
Ncube said the MDC-T national elections directorate headed by Sessil Zvidzai was talking to ZEC for a reprieve.
ZEC could not be reached for a comment.
Post published in: News