MDC calls on Cyril to save Zim poll

● President Cyril Ramaphosa has been asked to intervene in this month’s Zimbabwe elections.

The biggest opposition group, the MDC Alliance, led by Nelson Chamisa, is taking on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and has asked Ramaphosa for help.

This is the strongest sign yet that the outcome of the poll could be headed for a dispute.

Chamisa has accused the electoral commission of running a sham process, and has written to Ramaphosa for urgent intervention two weeks before the July 30 elections.

In an interview yesterday, Chamisa slammed the ZEC’s handling of the election.

“There is an election process crisis in Zimbabwe. The only logical thing to do is for the AU and SADC to step in and help this country from plunging into disharmony,” said Chamisa.

He demanded accountability and transparency from the electoral body.

He said the MDC had sent envoys into the region and were awaiting a response from Ramaphosa, who is chairman of the SADC.

“Our issue is on his desk . . . there has to be a meeting of all critical players.”

The South African embassy in Harare confirmed receipt of the letter.

Chamisa said the MDC Alliance “had gone through” the embassy to Ramaphosa.

Ramaphosa’s spokeswoman, Khusela Diko, said the president had yet to receive the letter because he was out of the country.

“Upon receipt of the letter, the president will determine the required action,” she said.

This week Chamisa and other leaders of the coalition handed a petition to the ZEC following a street demonstration by MDC Alliance supporters.

ZEC chairwoman Priscilla Chigumba defended the commission’s conduct.

“We received the petition from a particular party and we are in a process of compiling answers and we will answer them, but their petition is not different from previous petitions,” she said.

The MDC Alliance said the electoral commission had blocked its access to the voters roll and had not allowed it to see the printing of ballot papers, and that there had been a data breach.

Its claims of a data breach follow SMSes sent to private cellphone numbers on Monday by Zanu-PF, calling on voters to back the ruling party.