The ruling ZANU PF party has warned non-governmental organisations (NGOs) against interfering with the country’s electoral process.
Addressing the media on Thursday, ZANU PF Secretary for Information and Publicity, Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa, said NGOs working with opposition parties should desist from meddling or interfering in the electoral process.
“We hear of certain organisations which want to purvey the CCC position and they want to direct Africa and the SADC observer missions on what they should be doing. This is presumptuous of those NGOs. They are not substitutes for observer missions which are here,” he said.
Ambassador Mutsvangwa said the invitation to foreign observer missions attests to the country’s openness and transparency in its electoral process.
“We have invited observers from everywhere. We have nothing to hide. We are prepared to let observers come and see Zimbabweans exercise their democratic rights. Delegations from AU and SADC are in the country. They don’t need surrogates,” he added.
Several observers, including the SADC Observer Mission, Commonwealth Observer Mission, and European Union Observer Mission, are already in the country ahead of the general elections set for next Wednesday.
The warning from ZANU PF comes amid concerns from some quarters about the role of NGOs in the electoral process. Some NGOs have been accused of working with opposition parties to try to influence the outcome of the elections.
ZANU PF has dismissed these allegations, saying the NGOs are free to observe the elections but they should not interfere in the process.
The general elections are expected to be closely contested between ZANU PF and the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).
