Reuters - Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, filed a court challenge on Friday against President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s election victory, halting Mnangagwa’s inauguration that had been due on Sunday.
The first election since Robert Mugabe was forced to resign after a coup in November had been expected to end Zimbabwe’s pariah status and launch an economic recovery but post-election unrest has reminded the country of its violent past.
Chamisa’s lawyer Thabani Mpofu said he had asked the Constitutional Court to nullify the July 30 vote and that his court application meant Mnangagwa’s swearing-in had been halted.
Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi told Reuters Sunday’s inauguration “will no longer happen” until the case is finalised.
“On the basis of the evidence we have placed before the court, we seek in the main relief to the effect that the court should declare the proper winner and the proper winner is my client,” Mpofu told reporters outside.
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| Zimbabwe's Chamisa Challenges Election Result in Court, Inauguration Halted |
The constitution requires a losing presidential candidate to file a challenge within seven days of a winner being declared.
The Constitutional Court, which can declare a new winner or order a fresh election, must rule within 14 days of an election petition.
Last month, Mnangagwa secured a comfortable victory, according to results from the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, polling 2.46 million votes against 2.15 million for the 40-year-old Chamisa. The opposition said the result was rigged.
The election passed off relatively smoothly but its aftermath revealed the deep rifts in Zimbabwean society and the instinctive heavy-handedness of the security forces.
Two days after the vote, six people were killed in an army crackdown on protests against the victory by Mnangagwa’s ruling ZANU-PF party, a reminder that Zimbabwe will struggle to repair its image as a nation known for repression and economic collapse.
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission said it was concerned that no one was taking responsibility for the deployment of soldiers that the opposition says were harassing its supporters and ordinary citizens in townships at night.
“This poses an even bigger danger to communities as it appears that the soldiers beating up civilians are not accountable to anyone,” the commission said.
Earlier, opposition leader and former finance minister Tendai Biti appeared in court to challenge his arrest on Thursday on charges of public violence and illegally announcing election results. The case was postponed to next Wednesday. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Alison Williams)
