THE 2013 elections in Zimbabwe were rigged!!! Some might choose to call it election engineering. Until a few weeks ago, I had also begun to mistakenly believe that indeed Zanu PF had won the last election fair and square, until I started scratching the surface, combing through 2013 election results as posted on the ZEC website, looking for the needle in the haystack. Seek and ye shall find! I slowly began finding anomaly after anomaly. And the more I pulled at the strings, the more the mystery unravelled. I am going to apologise in advance for the length of this article, but there is a lot of information I have to disseminate to the public to show how the June 2013 election was rigged. As with all big exposés, a bit of background is required before I get to the good part.
Before I began my research, like every other Zimbabwean, I was also sitting on my hands waiting for someone else to come out and let everyone else know how the 2013 elections were rigged. But the longer I waited, the more I realised that answers would not be forthcoming unless I looked for them myself. And as the 2018 elections are approaching, my findings could not have come at a better time, due to the urgency of now. To those who follow my articles, you will know that I am a man of numbers. And following my gut feeling has led me to some interesting anomalies which point to voter theft on an industrial scale. As a teaser of what’s to come, here is snippet from my findings that anyone can verify and check from the ZEC’s website:
http://www.zec.gov.zw/download/category/54-national-assembly-provincial-results
Although once the powers that be see this article, I would not be surprised if their server suddenly goes down with a “503 Service Unavailable” message appearing on their website.
Now, simply click on the link above, then under “National Assembly Provincial Results”, click on the province MASHONALAND EAST, and then download or open the pdf for the CHIKOMBA WEST and GOROMONZI SOUTH constituency.
Just peruse these two pdf files and verify the numbers on the pdf with what I have written below. I have decided to highlight these anomalies first, as these are the most fascinating. Basically, you can sum the number of the Zanu PF candidate votes from two polling stations, and the total you get will coincide with the number of votes at another polling station. Here is an example:
Chikomba West Constituency – (35,255 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF Votes 17,153
Ward 2 – Machoyi Sales Pen Tent – 24 votes
Ward 2 – Mboe Primary School – 92 votes
Ward 2 – Majumba Primary School – 116 votes
Nothing suspicious, right? Well, take a closer look … 24 + 92 = 116.
If you thought this anomaly was a one-off accident, you’re quite mistaken. Take a look at the following:
Goromonzi South Constituency – (36,789 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF Votes 17,234
Ward 20 – Chiweshe Primary School – 191 votes
Ward 20 – Hatidani Primary School – 60 votes
Ward 20 – Jamaica Inn Training Centre – 251 votes
So again, when we take a closer look … 191 + 60 = 251.
The coincidence becomes a pattern, as just below that, we have the following number of votes in the same Goromonzi South constituency:
Ward 21 – Entre Rios Primary School – 144 votes
Ward 21 – Leicester Farm Shed – 167 votes
Ward 21 – Manor State Shed – 311 votes
Again, nothing suspicious, right? Well, take a closer look … 144 + 167 = 311.
As the saying goes, once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a pattern. What are the odds that this could happen three times between two constituencies within the same province? And I haven’t even done an in-depth analysis of other wards, constituencies and provinces to see if this phenomenon repeats itself, which I’m sure it does. The devil is in the detail. We have an illegitimate regime in place that has cheated and deceived the electorate in cahoots with the Zanu PF election committee (ZEC), and they are an illegitimate government ruling without our mandate which can only be derived through legitimate votes. The Zanu PF election Committee (ZEC) in its entirety should be disbanded with immediate effect.
Do I have your attention now dear reader? Granted, if you look at the above, you would be foolish to dismiss this as just a few hundred votes that appear to have been manipulated, but did not affect the overall results. But one needs to understand that this is a signature, a calling card so to speak. This is the proverbial middle finger from whoever rigged these elections (Nikuv?). It’s a taunt to the Zimbabwean electorate saying catch me if you can, you morons. A serial killer deliberately leaves clues when he overestimates his own intellect, believing he will never be caught. But patience dear reader, before I divulge the significant part of my findings, let’s look into the future, which is the next elections of 2018.
Upcoming 2018 Elections
For the long suffering Zimbabweans, our biggest nightmare is slowly unfolding right in front of our eyes as Zanu PF begins its preparations to rig the 2018 elections. Do not be side-tracked or distracted by the smoke and mirrors factional fights being played out to the gallery. Zanu PF is more united than ever, this is just diversionary tactic to give the illusion of a party in disarray when it could not be further from the truth. Instead, take note of the 365 cars recently purchased by Zanu PF in preparation for the 2018 elections. These vehicles will be deployed in each of Zimbabwe’s 210 constituencies for “campaigning”. Keep your eyes firmly fixed on Saviour Kasukuwere, he has been strategically deployed as minister of Local Government to disrupt and cause mayhem in urban councils controlled by the MDC, with the sole objective of having the MDC spending the better part of 2017 fire-fighting in the urban areas, whilst Zanu PF prepares for vote rigging in the rural areas for the 2018 elections.
It’s worth pointing out that only 30% of Zimbabwe’s population (3.9 million) live in the urban areas, of which the voting population is only about 1.8 million. And it is in the rural areas that the majority of Zimbabweans reside, about 70% of the total population (9.1 million), of which the voting population is 4.2 million. It also comes as no surprise that the majority of the 4 million people needed food aid last year. And it is in these rural areas that the same devil that destroyed the agriculture sector will come to the rescue of the rural population with the command agriculture scheme to feed the starving masses using tax payers’ money in return for votes.
And, of course, Zanu PF will again distribute more state land and stands for votes and, most critically, distribute food aid in return for votes. In such an uneven playing field, the opposition needs to ask themselves, where is the line between campaigning and vote buying? You have to think like Zanu PF to beat Zanu PF. The opposition will not get any electoral reforms out of a Zanu PF controlled government, so you have to beat them at their own vote buying game. If the opposition wants to win the 2018 elections, the key strategy will be to take the fight to Zanu PF in their supposed rural area strongholds. You have to enter the mouth of the beast to kill it.
The 2018 elections are critical in determining whether Zimbabwe becomes an economic success with a US$500 billion-dollar economy within 5 years, or whether we continue in the Zanu PF inspired downward spiral to economic oblivion yet again. You see, we’ve been down this path before. In 1998 the first economic crisis hit Zimbabwe, then again in 2008 the economy tanked yet again under Zanu PF’s misrule, mismanagement and hyperinflation, and it looks like 2018 will provide us with the same. Every ten years Zanu PF seem to find a new way to destroy the economy. Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a pattern.
Imagine the future you want first, then do everything in your voting power to obtain that future. Our votes should be our investment in our future. The biggest detriment preventing the Zimbabwean masses from overturning Zanu PF’s rigging machinery is voter apathy. If you don’t register to vote and vote, then don’t expect returns on an investment you have not made. Zimbabweans are happy to sleep in bank queues, waiting to withdraw their hard-earned money, yet they will not join demonstrations against a failed government. The least you can do is register to vote, and make sure you vote, if change is what you really want. I don’t know about you, but I certainly do not want to see Morgan coming out for yet another press conference “akabata musoro”.
The Zanu PF Election Committee (aka ZEC) is now making plans to introduce the Biometric Voting System (BVS) for the 2018 elections, and if this doesn’t jolt you out of your armchair, then you are too stupid to be reading this article. As the saying goes “bofu rikati ndino kurova, rinenge rine charakatsika”. So, when Zanu PF are calling for the implementation of the same BVS that the opposition have been calling for since 2008, something is amiss. Why-oh-why are Zanu PF so confident of winning the 2018 elections, despite being total abject failures in the running of the national economy for the past 37 years? That’s the 15 billion-dollar question!
You see if the Biometric Voting System (BVS) is specified correctly, implemented transparently, and all the checks and balances are in place to prevent BVS machine tampering and hacking, then the inherently fail safe mechanisms within the BVS will eliminate the possibility of ballot stuffing, double voting or double counting used to rig election results. The BVS will also need to be the version with a digital counting system backed by printed ballots, which can also be manually counted when the digital count fails due to power blackouts. Or even better, manually counting printed ballots to back up the digitally counted votes. The BVS has to be implemented fully, it cannot be just for voter registration as recently suggested by the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC).
Context of 2013 elections against the backdrop of the 2008 elections
Before I dissect the 2013 elections results, this analysis has to be done against the back-drop of the 2008 elections, in which there was a seismic shift in voting patterns within three months from the March 2008 elections to the June 2008 rerun. Of course, this change in the voting pattern was the result of the margin of terror brought about by Operation “Mavhoterapapi”.
In March 2008, Zimbabweans went to the polls to vote, in what were probably Zimbabwe’s freest and fairest elections of all time. The Zimbabwean economy had collapsed, due to state-led corruption of printing Zim dollars to buy US dollars and make a profit, which made Gono insanely rich and the rest of the povo poorer. It never occurred to the good guv that the major drawback with this unrestrained money printing would be hyperinflation of a zimtillion percent, a number I just invented in the same way the good guv invented catatonic macroeconomics.
This state-led corruption resulted in empty supermarket shelves, a cholera epidemic that killed over 4,000 people, no medicines in the hospitals, no books in schools, no teachers nor students in schools. There were queues for petrol, queues at banks, millions of people in need of food-aid, it was a Zanu- made economic armageddon of gargantuous proportions that would have resulted in a citizen’s revolt in any other country, but not in our Zimbabwe. We just took it with lots of vaseline and a smile.
March 2008 Elections (First Round)
So, with the above background scenario, it came as no surprise that from a total voting population of 5,934,768 (almost 6 million), the election result gave victory to Morgan and the MDC. We can only posit what the real results were. I think Morgan probably got more than 3 million votes in the March 2008 elections, and Ol Bob did not have more than 1 million, hence the Freudian slip from Ol Bob stating that the MDC won 73% of the vote in 2008. And of course who can forget how the results were not released for 6 weeks whilst they were being counted/manipulated, with the “official” results finally being released as follows:
Morgan – First Round 1,195,562
Ol Bob – First Round 1,079,730
Simba Makoni – the rest.
If you add up Morgan and Ol Bob’s votes this comes out to about 2.275 million. So, according to the “official” results, the voter turn-out in March 2008 was of 42.8% from a total voting population of almost 6 million.
June 2008 Elections (Second Round) Operation “Mavhoterapapi”
Of course, the above “official” results conveniently meant there was no clear winner, and a rerun was required to decide the presidency. There is no shadow of a doubt that the blood bath of the June 2008 rerun was a military operation. Operation “Mavhoterapapi” involved a well-coordinated strategy, deployment of militias and other resources in the setting up of torture (reorientation) bases. It was a satanic, sadistic and barbaric orgy of violence, and crimes against humanity which ranged from murder, long sleeve, short sleeve, kidnapping, torture, rape, abduction, forced detention, harassment, intimidation, forced displacements, destruction of property of burning of homesteads, with the sole objective of keeping kamudhara kaye in power. Thanks to the Research Advocacy Unit (RAU), all these heinous acts from the June 2008 rerun were recorded, and I have summarized them as follows:
MIDLANDS (Population 1.62 million) — 252 acts (3 murders, 2 rapes, 9 kidnappings/Abduction, 81 assaults, 4 tortured, 125 harassments/intimidation, 10 displacements etc.)
MASVINGO (Population 1.49 million) — 662 acts (1 murder, 49 kidnappings, 108 assaults, 11 tortured, 417 harassments/intimidation, 27 displacements etc.)
MASHONALAND EAST (Population 1.34 million) — 543 acts (11 murders, 14 kidnappings, 118 assaults, 41 tortured, 114 harassments/intimidation, 63 displacements etc.)
MASHONALAND WEST (Population 1.5 million) — 212 acts (3 murders, 1 rape, 4 kidnappings/Abduction, 55 assaults, 32 harassments/intimdation, 99 displacements etc.)
MASHONALAND CENTRAL (Population 1.5 million) — 345 acts (5 murders, 6 kidnappings/Abductions, 30 assaults, 90 harrassments/intimidation, 187 displacements etc.)
MANICALAND (Population 1.75 million) — 1925 acts (3 murders, 1 rape, 61 kidnappings/abductions, 216 assaults, 251 malicious damages of property, 64 torture, 57 unlawful detention, 439 harassments/intimidation, 823 displacements).
Without a doubt, MANICALAND was the worst affected, followed by MASVINGO and then MASHONALAND EAST, CENTRAL & WEST. Is it any surprise that MANICALAND also “voted” Zanu PF in 2013? These were not just numbers, statistics or eye-catching headlines in the media, these were our brothers, sisters, family, friends, sons and daughters; some of whom paid the ultimate price for voting for change! What a lot of people seem to overlook is that these areas of MANICALAND, MASVINGO and even MASHONALAND had overwhelmingly voted for the MDC and Morgan in the first round of the March 2008 election. This is why they were specifically targeted for voting the “wrong” way. Would they have been tortured and killed if they had voted Zanu PF? Of course, not.
So, the biggest fallacy of all is to believe that these provinces are Zanu PF’s stronghold. It’s nonsense! These are Zanu PF’s captives, they have been cowed into submission and brutalized into voting the “right” way for Zanu PF. Without intimidation and threats of violence, these provinces would overwhelmingly vote for the opposition again in 2018, as they did in March 2008. The opposition parties have to literally liberate them from Zanu PF.
The June 2008 election rerun violence eventually led to Morgan pulling out, and of course Ol Bob went on to “win” uncontested with the following results:
Morgan – Second round 233,000
Ol Bob – Second round 2,150,269
The magic million.
Now pay attention dear reader. If you add up Morgan’s and Ol Bob’s votes for the rerun of June 2008, you again get about 2.38 million votes or 40.3% turnout. How did Ol Bob’s votes suddenly double? Ol Bob managed to get 2,150,269 – 1,079,730 = 1,070,539 extra votes from nowhere. My question is, where did this magic million suddenly come from? Did Zanu PF just write down the results off the top of their heads? Or were these actual voters, rural voters force-marched to the polls to vote the right way? Those who had voted MDC in the March 2008 polls suddenly decided to vote Zanu PF after the bludgeoning whilst others obviously just stayed at home after Morgan had pulled out?
This magic million is of great importance. Whilst some critics may argue that Morgan should have participated in the violent rerun, I totally disagree. It was the right thing to do at the time, given the circumstances, Zanu PF had declared a war on the citizens and not an election. Had Morgan participated, he would have been beaten resoundingly, and would have inadvertently legitimized the results of Ol Bob’s victory. By pulling out of the rerun, Morgan ensured that Ol Bob did not get the legitimacy he needed from SADC or the AU and, as a result, Ol Bob was forced into the GNU which saved Zimbabwe from the precipice of the abyss, and gave them some reprieve and hope from 2009 to 2013.
2013 Elections Conspiracy Theories
After the 2013 election results were released in record time, a lot of conspiracy theories were put forward at the time following the supposed trouncing of the opposition parties by the “revolutionary” Zanu PF. But of course, we all know that Zanu PF are revolutionaries only when it comes to industrial scale theft, corruption, looting and plundering of national resources. Whether it’s elections or US$15 billion in diamonds, they have no equal, they have undoubtedly surpassed our former colonialists in every sphere of exploitation and impoverishment of the Zimbabwean masses.
First and foremost, let’s just recap some of the crazy and not so crazy theories that were put forward to explain the 2013 election “loss” of the opposition. There was the magic ink theory, which posited that ink marked on the ballot papers would magically drift to a Zanu PF candidate through some type of osmosis or adsorption. This is not to be confused with the theory of the washable indelible ink, which was easily removed with water, and would have allowed double voting. Then there were other allegations of double voting using voter registration slips, which apparently were dished out like confetti by Zanu PF election agents.
Then there was the theory of bussing around voters from one polling station to another in the same ward to double and triple vote, which sounded quite impractical at the time, but if a bus can carry between 76 to 100 people, you would only need about 3 or 4 buses to influence the number of votes between 2 polling stations in strategic constituencies. Having said this, it would require military strategy, coordination and precision to succeed in influencing a large part of the votes in strategic constituents, but is not in the realms of improbability. And if you think about it, were Zanu PF not able to mobilize and bus in hundreds of thousands of brain-dead hungry zombies in one morning for their million-man-march in support of Ol Bob in 2016?
Then there was the theory that Zanu PF had manipulated the voter register, which was only availed by the ZEC in hard copies a day before the elections. There was also the theory of frog-marching of our down-trodden rural voters, who would line up behind the headmen or chiefs with their names being taken down to ensure they voted the right way. And of these rural voters, over 200,000 were assisted votes in a country with a 91% literacy rate. In any other country, the alarm bells would have been ringing, but no one in the opposition even batted an eyelid.
Then there was the anomaly of the number of voters in Harare being 1.2 million as per the 2012 Census, yet only 826,000 showed up on the 2013 voters’ register, so about 300,000 voters just went missing, somehow. And from the 826,000 that appeared on the 2013 voters’ register in Harare Metropolitan area, apparently only 423,000 voted, and another 200,000 were turned away on the day of voting.
With all these conspiracy theories floating around, no one bothered to carry out a critical and detailed analysis of how the election was “won” by Zanu PF, or how it was lost by the opposition? How many of these hypotheses were just conjectures or down right crazy, and how many had an element of truth? It may have been post-traumatic stress disorder, where many Zimbabweans were too shell shocked to come to terms with what had just happened, and simply sank into despair and just gave up.
Zanu PF Election Committee (otherwise known as ZEC)
Every Zimbabwean has a role to play in the true liberation of Zimbabwe through our unarmed struggle against these black colonialists called Zanu PF. Morgan has played his part and, despite his many shortcomings, continues to persevere. I will try to play my own small part in the greater scheme of things by, at least, exposing how the 2013 election was rigged, and how the opposition parties can prevent a repeat of this election engineering come 2018.
As already explained above, the information I needed for my analysis of the 2013 election results was hidden in plain sight and is posted on the ZEC website:
http://www.zec.gov.zw/download/category/54-national-assembly-provincial-results
Why none of the opposition parties even bothered to carry out a detailed analysis of what had transpired is beyond me. No one went through these election results with a fine tooth comb, polling station by polling station. Organisations such as the ZESN (Zimbabwe Election Support Network) and RAU (Research Advocacy unit) came out with some half-baked reports. Unfortunately, none of these reports provided concrete proof, the nuts and bolts with numbers to show how the votes in the 2013 election had been manipulated to provide a landslide victory to Zanu PF. As always, the devil is in the detail.
2013 Election Results
Before any election reforms were put in place, Ol Bob called for snap elections in June 2013 after a court case brought to the Constitutional Court by Jealousy Mawarire “forced” him to declare an election date. Compared to previous elections, it was as peaceful as they have come. But the quiet storm was necessary in order not to arouse suspicion whilst vote rigging. The results of the presidential elections were as follows:
Morgan – 1,172,349 votes
Ol Bob – 2,110,434 votes
From the above results, you get the illusion that Morgan’s votes did not vary much from the first round “official” results of the March 2008 elections. There was a difference of only 1,172,349 – 1,195,562 = – 23,213. But don’t forget that Morgan probably got about 2 to 3 million votes in the first round of the March 2008 elections. So, did Morgan really suddenly lose all those votes just because he became the legend of the seas? Not even Trump lost his votes with all the scandals he had. So, what happened exactly?
Surprisingly enough, Ol Bob’s votes did not vary much from his previous “victory”. Ol Bob’s votes varied by 2,110,434 – 2,150,269 = -39,835 from the rerun June 2008 election. One could be excused for thinking that this was a copy and paste job, as the results were pretty much identical. So, that magic million that Ol Bob managed to get in the June 2008 election rerun appeared again. But how? Was it thanks to Zanu PF’s famous ZimAsset which promised 2.2 million jobs in exchange for 2.15 million votes? Was it Zanu PF’s fine performance during the GNU in which they were apparently being “hamstrung” by the MDC?
With the MDC out of government, they would go on to show us what a fantastic job they could do, and so they have. Was it their vote buying through debt forgiveness for citizen’s bills with ZESA and other local municipalities? Was it their land redistribution finally paying dividends through votes? Was it their incredible ability of mass mobilization of their supporters to vote? Or did it have something to do with the voters’ register and Nikuv? Before I begin to divulge the details of some of the significant anomalies I have found, some background is required for the framework and mechanics of an election in Zimbabwe.
Voting Process in June 2013 elections – Maximum number of voters per poll possible
Let’s start with the basics of what is physically possible, or impossible, within certain boundary limits for the voting process, at each polling station in a given period of time.
Now, international best practice sets the recommended number of voters per poll station at 500, based on a poll station opening at 07:00 am in the morning and closing at 22:00 pm at night, or 15 hours (900 minutes) in total. If you take a linear approach, assuming a single queue, with one person voting one after another, with a single serving desk, single voting booth and single ballot box, this means that each of the 500 people will have approximately 1.8 minutes each to vote within the 15-hour window.
Obviously 1.8 minutes per person is practically impossible to have your name checked, ID validated, name crossed out, receive the ballot papers, and mark an “X” on the ballot papers. Of course, in practice, the recommended 500 voters per polling station is based upon the voting process being accelerated by having more than one queue at the polling station, and also having a number of service desks, voting booths and ballot boxes to expedite the voting process.
In the context of the 2013 Zimbabwean election, the “mechanical” part of the voting process at each polling station involved the following 7 steps:
1. Enter the polling station.
2. An usher would check whether the voter had a valid ID to vote and whether they had indelible ink on their finger to prevent double voting.
3. The polling officer would then verify the voter’s registration status using a hard copy of the voter’s roll for the ward, and if the name is found on the roll, mark through the voter’s entire entry with a straight line. NOTE – If only one copy of the voter’s roll was being used at that particular polling station, this would create a bottle neck as each person is crossed off one by one on the roll.
4. Once the voter was cleared, the voter was then issued with three officially stamped ballot papers
5. From there, the voter’s finger was then marked with indelible ink
6. The voter would then mark their ballot papers behind a privacy screen
7. The final step would be for the voter to deposit his/her ballot into the transparent ballot box which was sealed.
Granted, these 7 steps take a minimum of 7 minutes, and maybe a maximum of 20 minutes, for each voter to complete. Yet in Zimbabwe, this is not the case. Especially in rural areas, where voting seems to be carried out at break neck speeds. Now, as stated before, you may be able to minimize the length of the queues at polling stations and reduce the waiting time for voting by having a number of queues and 4 to 5 ballot booths and 4 to 5 ballot boxes per polling station. With about 5 ballot boxes this means that 500 people can stand in 5 parallel queues with 100 people in each queue.
So, 100 voters per poll booth each taking a minimum of 7 minutes to vote = 700 minutes. This means that 500 people can vote at a polling station with 5 booths in 700 minutes (11.6 hours) let’s say 12 hours for the sake of argument. Are you still with me? This is the logic behind setting a limit of 500 people per polling station given a 12-hour voting window. To those who want to take this further, you can apply “queuing theory” to optimize the queue length, waiting time and also lower the costs for the voting process, but that’s a topic for another day.
Let’s get even more analytical, so you can understand where I’m going with this. The average adult occupies a space of about 30 cm by 60cm when standing in a queue. So, 500 people standing in a single file would theoretically be 500 x 300 mm = 150 m long queue. That’s a pretty long queue. And of course, 1000 people standing in a single file would take up 300m. Where am I going with this? Does anyone remember these kinds of queues during the 2013 elections? Even if some early birds went to vote by 7:00 am, the maximum number has been about 100 to 120 people waiting. Of course, some people arrive later to vote, not everyone wakes up at the break of dawn, but 500 is still the thumb rule for number of voters at a polling station.
If we take a look at the recently completed Bikita West constituency, the numbers of voters per polling station as reported by the ZESN backs up the above. Let’s take a sample from the number of voters counted by ZESN and HR personnel.
At Nyika Health centre ward 12 as at 2 pm, 345 people voted (127 males and 218 females).
From 7:00 am to 14:00 pm is 7 hours, so that’s 345/7 = 49.2 people per hour. In another 3 hours another 150 people would have voted and that would have come to a total of 500. This was unusually quick voting.
At Dungu P.sch,ward 12 as @ 2pm,135 people had voted(40 males and 95 females)10 assisted voters(4males and 6 females)
That’s 135/7 = 19 people per hour.
At Birivenge Secondary School, in ward 12, 291 people had voted as at 2 pm (190 females,101 males). 26 people were assisted (23 females,3 males).
That’s about 291/7 = 41 people per hour.
At Masarira Primary School, in ward 22, 212 people had voted as at 12:40 have (133 females,79 males) 21 people were assisted due to illiteracy. 4 people were turned away who had no national i.d.
That’s about 212/5.66 = 37 people per hour
At Domboshava Primary School, Ward 11, 215 people had voted as at 11:30 am (129 females, 86 males). 17 people were assisted (13 females,4 males).
That’s 215/4.5hrs = 47.7 people per hour.
From the above it is safe to assume that 50 people per hour is the maximum that can be accommodated at a polling station in Zimbabwe. So, in a 10-hour voting period (07:00 am to 17:00 pm), the maximum number of voters per polling station should be 500. Even if the voting period would be extended to a 12-hour period (19:00 pm), the maximum number would still only be 600. Of course, voting at break neck speeds and probably skipping some of the steps described above. So why are Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) now calling for 1500 voters per polling station for the 2018 elections? Well that’s where vote rigging begins.
This brings me to one of the main anomalies I have found with the 2013 elections results. Let’s keep in mind that 500 is the maximum number of people that can vote at polling station with 5 ballot boxes in a 10-hour window in Zimbabwe. In reality, the maximum number that would be able to vote, would more probably be around 400 people per polling station. But let’s keep the number at 500 for argument’s sake and for our easy analysis. Despite these limiting mechanics of the voting process, at some polling stations, Zanu PF candidates managed to receive above 1000 votes per day during the 2013 elections, which is double that physically possible during a 10-hour or 12-hour period. So how did they do it?
Anomalies with the 2013 Election Results
I will take some samples from the 2013 election results as posted on the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) website:
http://www.zec.gov.zw/download/category/54-national-assembly-provincial-results
It would have been time consuming and extensively laborious to analyse all constituencies ward by ward, polling station by polling station, so to narrow down my sample size, I decided to look at those constituencies in which Zanu PF got an unusually high number of votes, i.e above 10,000 votes per constituency. It’s also worth remembering that in 2008, the Zanu PF government carried out a “delimitation exercise” before the 2008 elections, the objective of which was to divide each of Zimbabwe’s 10 provinces into 210 constituents with an average of 24,000 voters to allow for equal representation in the National Assembly.
It is equally worrying to hear that Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) are carrying out a mapping exercise. The purpose of this exercise will become self-evident later. With the above in mind, I also decided to investigate the constituencies where there were more than 24,000 registered voters.
Voter Register was key to rigging
The voter’s register was key to the vote rigging of the 2013 election! How, you might ask? Let’s start with the number of voters in Zimbabwe. If you go by the national census of 2012, then Zimbabwe has a voting population (adults above 18) of approximately 6 million. Now, according to the same 2012 national census, there are 2,742,663 people between the ages of 18-29, yet only 822,239 appeared on the 2013 voter’s register. Almost 2 million young voters in the age bracket of 18-29 went “missing” during the 2013 election.
One might erroneously dismiss this as voter apathy amongst the young, but how do you then explain an extra 800,000 people between the ages of 30-50 on the 2013 voter’s register that were not part of the 2012 national census? And who genuinely believes that Zimbabwe has 341,003 people aged over 80? Seriously?! So, that’s about 800,000 extra, unaccounted for, non-existent voters between the ages of 30-50, and another about 200,000 extra non-existent voters over the age of 80. If you add that up, that’s about 800,000 + 200,000 = 1,000,000, or the magic million. Of course, this could just be a coincidence as I’m just taking estimates; it is just conjecture at the moment, so let’s look a closer look at the numbers in more detail.
1. HARARE METROPOLITAN (Voting Population – 1,125,260 per 2012 census, but only 826,274 voters appeared on the 2013 Voter’s register, about 300,000 missing)
The urban areas are supposed to be opposition strongholds, so the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) had to find a way to reduce the number of votes in HARARE METROPOLITAN. For a start, there were about 300,000 voters “missing” from the 2013 voter’s register in the HARARE METROPOLITAN PROVINCE. As per the 2012 national census, Harare has a voting population of about 1.125 million, yet only 826,274 were registered on the 2013 voter’s register. That’s odd. And worse still, although HARARE METROPOLITAN province is the second most populous province in Zimbabwe with 1.125 million voters, the ZEC only set up 875 polling stations in this province. In contrast, if you compare the 875 polling stations allocated to HARARE METROPOLITAN province to the following provinces, it is clear that there was a deliberate and sinister agenda to disenfranchise HARARE voters:
1303 polling stations for MANICALAND (approximate voting population 928,560 as per 2012 census)
822 polling stations for MASHONALAND CENTRAL (approximate voting population 610,560 as per 2012 census)
1047 polling stations for MASHONALAND EAST (approximate voting population 712,826 as per 2012 census)
1303 polling stations for MASHONALAND WEST (approximate voting population 795,618 as per 2012 census)
1238 polling stations for MASVINGO (approximate voting population 787,098 as per 2012 census)
It’s ludicrous, yet quite understandable from a Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) point of view, that HARARE METROPOLITAN had to have almost the same number of polling stations as MASHONALAND CENTRAL, which has half its population.
What does this mean? Well it’s quite simple, for a voting population of 1.12 million in HARARE, having 875 polling stations translates to 1,300 voters per polling station. Remember, 500 is maximum physically possible per polling station in our particular case. So, the 1,300 is almost three times the recommended international best practice. To make it worse, within a 12 hour (720 minutes) voting window, each person would have 0.55 minutes or 33 seconds to vote (720/1300). This was obviously a deliberate bottle neck created by Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) to prevent the majority of people in HARARE METROPOLITAN province from voting for the opposition. So, those who still believe that the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) is impartial and independent need to have their heads examined.
The Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) reduced the number of voters registered, then reduced the number of polling stations in the HARARE METROPOLITAN province, making it impossible for all those who wanted to vote to actually vote, to add insult to injury they went further and turned away more than 200,000 voters on the actual voting day. And what was the result? Well out of a possible 1.125 million votes in HARARE METROPOLITAN province, only 423,093 managed to cast their votes. And here is the shocker, of these 423,093 votes, only 224,285 voted for the MDC-T and an unbelievable 169,272 voted for Zanu PF, with the remainder of votes going to MDC and independents. Now let’s analyse those votes “won” by Zanu PF in the HARARE METROPOLITAN province:
Epworth – (35,703 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 15,468 votes
Harare East – (33,180 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 8,190 votes
Harare South – (36,214 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 20,069 votes
Mbare – (43,169 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 14,764 votes
Interestingly enough, in the constituencies of Epworth, Harare East, Harare South and Mbare, which were “won” by Zanu PF as shown above, the average number of registered voters per constituency ranges from 33,000 to 43,000. Yet the average number of registered voters in the rest of the constituencies in HARARE METROPOLITAN province is about 24,184. So, there were roughly 9,000 to 20,000 more “registered” voters in constituencies won by Zanu PF in the HARARE METROPOLITAN province, which is supposed to be an MDC stronghold. Coincidence? I think not! Zanu PF found a way to double vote, double count their votes, or simply manipulated the tallied votes at ward then constituency level to overinflate their number of votes.
But why over-register? The devil is in the detail. If a constituency is supposed to have roughly 24,000 registered voters as per the delimitation exercise of 2008, and a Zanu PF candidate magically gets 20,000 votes and an MDC candidate gets 11,000 votes in the same constituency, then obviously questions will be asked as to where the extra 7,000 or so votes came from. So, to hide this, the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) had to inflate the number of “registered voters” to avoid any suspicion being raised when all votes were added and tallied up at constituency level to the number of inflated voters registered. Am I clutching at straws? Is that the best proof I have? Patience dear reader.
The most worrying voting pattern was in the Mashonaland provinces, i.e. MASHONALAND EAST, MASHONALAND CENTRAL & MASHONALAND WEST provinces, which are supposed to be the heartland and supposed stronghold of Zanu PF. A no-go area for the opposition parties, which means Zanu PF can cook the voting figures uninterrupted to their hearts’ content. And if there are 2.1 million votes in these Mashonaland provinces, then these are our swing “states” for any party to win the general election.
2. MASHONALAND CENTRAL (As per 2013 Voter’s Register – 603,639 voters)
The biggest anomaly which coincided with other high numbers of “registered” voters, was the almost identical voting numbers in the same constituency between different polling stations within the same/different wards. Take a look at the following and let’s see if you can spot the pattern of the number of votes “won” by the Zanu PF candidate at each polling station:
Bindura North Constituency – (37,387 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 23,937 votes
Ward 2 – Matepatepa Country Club – 593 votes
Ward 1 – Bindura Hospital – 594 votes
Ward 1 – Bindura Primary School – 595 votes
Ward 11 – Makwinja Street Open Space – 594 votes
Ward 5 – St Basil’s Primary School – 594 votes
Ward 1 – Banwell Farm – 398 votes
Ward 2 – Azikara Farm Tent – 398 votes
Ward 8 – Aerodrome Shopping Centre – 370 votes
Ward 7 – Chipadze High – 374 votes
Ward 8 – Marian Primary School – 375 votes
Ward 3 – DA’s Campus – 221 votes
Ward 5 – Chipadze A – 219 votes
If I was to cook up voting numbers, I would at least try to make sure that there is a slight difference of anywhere between +1 and +5 votes between different polling stations in order not to raise any suspicion. It looks like some effort was made to hide this vote tallying manipulation in other provinces.
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of voters that are physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 3 – Mabwemachena Secondary – 693 votes
Ward 7 – Chiwaridza Farm Tent – 813 votes
Ward 3 – Rosetta Rust Primary – 838 votes
Ward 12 – Chiwaridzo 2 Shopping Centre Tent – 958 votes
Ward 1 – Manga Primary School – 1020 votes
Bindura South Constituency – (30,940 as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF Votes “won” 21,297
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 8 – Ruwanga Farm (Tent) – 410 votes
Ward 8 – Burnside Primary – 413 votes
Ward 14 – Musana Primary School – 413 votes
Ward 15 – Nyava Primary – 453 votes
Ward 15 – Nyava Secondary School – 456 votes
In this constituency three (3) seems to be the magic number again, i.e. if numbers were identical, this would easily be identified, so by setting a difference of +1 to +3 the voting numbers look less suspicious and it is harder to find such anomalies.
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 7 – Chiwaridza Farm Tent – 813 votes
Ward 12 – Masembura Primary – 779 votes
Guruve North Constituency – (34,747 as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF Votes “won” 21,911
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 16 – Kaminza B.C Tent – 325 votes
Ward 17 – Rungudzi Clinic Tent – 326 votes
Ward 24 – Goromonzi Business Centre Tent – 376 votes
Ward 24 – Mushongahande Business Centre Tent – 380 votes
Ward 6 – Gurupira Village Tent – 516 votes
Ward 6 – Kasuwo Primary School – 526 votes
Ward 2 – Matare Primary School – 405 votes
Ward 2 – Nyamanji Primary School – 454 votes
Ward 18 – Chingwaro Primary School – 534 votes
Ward 4 – Mukaera Art Centre Tent – 544 votes
Ward 5 – Museka Dip Tank Tent – 541 votes
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of voters that are physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 14 – Masomo Primary School – 714 votes
Ward 16 – Mamini Primary School – 741 votes
Ward 23 – Kemutamba Primary School – 808 votes
Ward 2 – Chikwidibe Primary School – 917 votes
Ward 19 – Negomo Primary School – 1045 votes
Ward 21 – Gwakwe Primary School – 1130 votes
Ward 6 – Guruve District Registry New Complex – 1201 votes
And the list goes on and on, showing an unusually high number of voters registered in each constituency compared to the national average. And by looking at the results of the individual wards, at polling station level, you see the same anomalies I have highlighted above. Take a look at the following, keeping in mind that the average number of voters per constituency should be roughly 24,000.
Shamva North Constituency – (30,827 as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 19,194 votes
Mbire Constituency – (33,751 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 19,958 votes
Mount Darwin South Constituency – (32,704 registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 19,680 votes
Muzarabani South Constituency – (26,662 voters registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 21,310 votes
Mount Darwin East Constituency – (32,704 voters registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 21,453 votes
Guruve North Constituency – (34,747 voters registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 21,911 votes
Mount Darwin West Constituency – (31,205 voters registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 22,877 votes
Rushinga Constituency – (36,156 voters registered as per 2013 roll) – Zanu PF “won” 24,464 votes
Would you not expect maybe 10,000 or 15,000 or 12,000 here and there, as a total for Zanu PF votes? Yet the results are consistently oscillating between 19,000 and 24,000. Remember, the average size of a constituency is 24,000 in Zimbabwe, so not only was there a high number of “registered” voters, there was an even higher turnout in MASHONALAND CENTRAL, with about 80% apparently voting for Zanu PF.
2. MASHONALAND EAST (As per 2013 Voter’s Register – 724,402 voters)
The same pattern repeats itself in MASHONALAND EAST where the biggest anomaly which coincided with the high number of “registered” voters, was the almost identical voting numbers in the same constituency between different wards. Again, take a look at the following. Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Chikomba West Constituency – (35,255 as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 17,153 votes
Ward 1 – Pimbi Primary School – 278 votes
Ward 1 – Chikomba Primary School – 280 votes
Ward 15 – Nyazvidzi Primary School – 222 votes
Ward 15 – Mudonzvo Primary School – 224 votes
Ward 1 – Manyenye Primary School – 133 votes
Ward 5 – Chamukwenjera Primary School – 134 votes
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 7 – Kadungure Primary School – 820 votes
Ward 9 – Liebenburg Primary School – 829 votes
Goromonzi South Constituency – (36,789 as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 17,234 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 22 – Dana B Shed – 213 votes
Ward 17 – Mushonganyika Farm – 215 votes
Ward 20 – Nehanda Primary School – 216 votes
Ward 23 – Muza Store Tent – 215 votes
Ward 23 – Harveysdale Shed – 218 votes
Ward 8 – Zimre 2 Primary School – 274 votes
Ward 8 – Zimre 1 Primary School – 277 votes
In this constituency three (3) seems to be the magic numbers again, i.e. if numbers were identical, this would easily be identified, so by setting a difference of +1 to +3 the voting numbers look less suspicious and it is harder to find such anomalies.
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 25 – Aeriel Primary School – 820 votes
Ward 25 – Caledonia 1 Tent – 874 votes
Ward 25 – Caledonia 2 Tent – 926 votes
Ward 25 – Caledonia 3 Tent – 533 votes
Ward 25 – Caledonia 4 Tent – 638 votes
The above is yet another interesting anomaly. Caledonia mine has approximately 762 workers, and curiously enough there were 4 tents with high numbers of votes in each tent. Let’s stretch the imagination and assume that all workers at Caledonia mine, along with their wives and other workers who do not belong to Caledonian mine voted for Zanu PF at these four tents. But how did they all manage to vote when it is physically impossible for more that 500 to vote at a polling station within the given voting window.
Murehwa South Constituency – (29,367 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 17,368 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 17 – Chipinda Primary School – 379 votes
Ward 17 – Maponongwe Primary School – 379 votes
Ward 22 – Chirunji Primary School – 553 votes
Ward 22 – Rufaro Primary School – 553 votes
Ward 23 – Hanwa Hall – 274 votes
Ward 23 – Howgate Primary School – 278 votes
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 20 – Jekwa Primary School – 640 votes
Ward 22 – Dzete Secondary School – 663 votes
Ward 24 – Craiglea Secondary School – 761 votes
Ward 24 – Nyamita Primary School – 963 votes
Ward 24 – St Columbus Primary School – 713 votes
Mutoko East Constituency – (26,211 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 15,064 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 18 – Gibson B/Centre Tent – 166 votes
Ward 18 – Kangoza B/Centre Tent – 168 votes
Ward 13 – Mudzonga Primary School – 192 votes
Ward 13 – Rutsito DDF Camp Tent – 195 votes
Ward 15 – Chapanduka B/Centre Tent – 215 votes
Ward 15 – Nyajinha Village Tent – 218 votes
Ward 17 – Mushimbo B/Centre Shed – 219 votes
Ward 9 – Mbudzi B/Centre Tent – 405 votes
Ward 16 – Madzande B/Centre Shop – 410 votes
Ward 17 – Mushimbo Primary School – 411 votes
Ward 18 – Mapona B/Centre – 464 votes
Ward 18 – Chisambiro Primary School – 468 votes
Ward 19 – Chidye Primary School – 495 votes
Ward 19 – Domborinenhiwi Primary School – 499 votes
In this constituency three (3) and four (4) seem to be the magic numbers again, i.e. if numbers were identical, this would easily be identified, so by setting a difference of +1 to +4 the voting numbers look less suspicious and it is harder to find such anomalies.
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 14 – Chatiza Primary School – 698 votes
Ward 18 – Chimoio Primary School – 787 votes
Mutoko South Constituency – (30,478 voters as per 2013 voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 20,944 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 25 – Nyadhiri Mission Primary School – 171 votes
Ward 25 – CharumbiraVillage Tent – 175 votes
Ward 26 – Nyamudeza B/Centre Tent – 373 votes
Ward 26 – Village 20 Tent – 375 votes
Ward 29 – Ruvimbo Secondary School – 376 votes
Ward 29 – Dombodzvipa Secondary School – 379 votes
Ward 26 – Corner Store B/Centre Shop – 618 votes
Ward 28 – Chinyika Primary School – 614 votes
In this constituency three (3) and four (4) seem to be the magic numbers again, i.e. if numbers were identical, this would easily be identified, so by setting a difference of +1 to +4 the voting numbers look less suspicious and it is harder to find such anomalies.
Constantly keep in mind that 500 to 600 is the maximum number of votes physically possible at each polling station for a 10 to 12 hour voting period. The following number of votes for Zanu PF candidates alone means that there was double voting, ballot stuffing or double counting at constituency levels in these cases:
Ward 25 – Zvidozvevanhu Primary School – 692 votes
Ward 27 – Chidara Primary School – 702 votes
Ward 25 – Nyahurunguhwe Primary School – 706 votes
Ward 25 – Ganyambadze Primary School – 710 votes
Ward 20 – District Registry Public Offices – 786 votes
Ward 25 – Chimurenga Primary School – 875 votes
Ward 20 – Chinzanga Primary School – 958 votes
Ward 20 – Chinzanga Buffer Zone Tent – 962 votes
Ward 20 – Mtoko Gvt Secondary School – 1143 votes
Do some of these places even exist? Just look at some of the names. As with MASHONALAND CENTRAL, the list goes on and on for MASHONALAND EAST, showing an unusually high number of voters per polling station which coincided with a high number or registered voters per constituency. MASHONALAND CENTRAL, EAST & WEST were made no-go areas for the opposition, which is not surprising as there are 2.1 million votes there to be manipulated in these provinces alone. Vote rigging in the MASHONALAND provinces was mainly by force marching people to the polls, lining them up behind the headmen and writing down their names as a means of intimidation to vote the right way. MASHONALAND is also the heartland of the land reform programme, where patronage and the fear of losing your land is enough incentive to vote the right way. Of course, if you factor in the margin of terror from the 2008 June rerun, the above means the MASHONALAND provinces are the ones to make or break the next election.
3. MIDLANDS
The same pattern repeats itself in MIDLANDS where the biggest anomaly which coincided with the high number of “registered” voters was the almost identical voting numbers in the same constituency between different wards. Again, take a look at the following:
Chirumanzi-Zibagwe West Constituency – (35,255 voters as per voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 17,153 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 20 – Driefontein A Primary School – 155 votes
Ward 10 – England Primary School – 156 votes
Ward 19 – Manyora Homestead Tent – 158 votes
Ward 2 – Rockvale Farm Tent – 172 votes
Ward 24 – St Theresa Primary School – 173 votes
Ward 1 – Milsonia Village 9 Tent – 177 votes
Ward 15 – Gangarabwe Primary School – 178 votes
Ward 11 – Chitenderano Primary School – 179 votes
Ward 1 – Pimbi Primary School – 278 votes
Ward 1 – Chikomba Primary School – 280 votes
Ward 18 – Chingegomo Primary School – 313 votes
Ward 20 – Chakastaad Primary School – 314 votes
Ward 2 – Pauldale Primary School – 325 votes
Ward 1 – Milsonia Primary School – 328 votes
Ward 16 – Chishuku Primary School – 373 votes
Ward 2 – Chimwaoga Primary School – 375 votes
Ward 31 – Creek Delvillewood Homestead – 376 votes
Ward 20 – Ortons Drift Secondary School – 379 votes
Chiwundura Constituency – (33,506 votes as per voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 11,550 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 5 – Senda A Secondary School – 330 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 14 – Hwahwa Primary Schopol – 331 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 11 – Muchakata Community Hall – 237 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 11 – Mkoba A Golf Course Tent – 234 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 11 – Mkoba B Golf Course Tent – 238 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 11 – Mkoba C Golf Course Club House – 247 votes for Zanu PF
Gokwe Nembudziya Constituency – (28,601 voters as per voter’s register) – Zanu PF “won” 12,551 votes
Anomalies of identical or almost identical voting numbers at different polling stations in the same/different ward within the same constituency:
Ward 25 – Mpungwe BH Tent – 105 votes
Ward 26 – Chikarimatsito Primary School – 105 votes
Ward 26 – Mupakwa BH Primary School – 105 votes
Ward 36 – Mhuma Primary School – 450 votes for Zanu PF
Ward 36 – Murwisisi “Tent” – 449 votes for Zanu PF
These are only a “few” constituencies that I have highlighted above, without doing an in-depth analysis, constituency by constituency, ward by ward, poll station by poll station. You can see from the few examples that I have provided above that there is a systematic pattern which would suggest vote rigging by concocting voting numbers. Worse still, the unusually high numbers of voters per polling station (above the physical threshold of 500 votes practical) where Zanu PF “won” by landslide, suggests the 2013 elections were rigged on an industrial scale.
The analysis that I have carried out above is the kind of work that the opposition parties, the ZESN and RAU should have done straight after the 2013 elections. They simply had to sit down for a few days, going through the results with a fine-tooth comb to look for anomalies which would suggest vote rigging. But they couldn’t be bothered, and we had to endure another 5 years of ruinous Zanu PF policies which have brought Zimbabwe back to the precipice of another economic abyss yet again.
How the numbers were inflated.
This is the last piece of the puzzle that needs insider information. I was not present when the votes were counted, so I cannot tell you exactly how Zanu PF managed to double vote, double count or tally up the votes from each polling station, ward, up to constituency level to manipulate the figures per constituency. I can only hazard a guess that one of the following methods was used:
1. Ballot stuffing – the opposition party’s election agents would have to be in on it, as they had to sign off the poll station based results after they were counted, so this is not probable.
2. Double voting – although this would have involved a logistical nightmare in bussing in of people, it is not improbable.
3. Inflating the numbers of votes when counted centrally – I think this is how they did it. The Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) transported the ballot boxes from each polling station to “secure” areas or the constituency central points, where the votes tally from individual wards was manipulated to give the final results.
One of the reasons why an opposition party won the 2008 elections, was because as soon as the results had been counted at each polling stations, the results were posted outside each polling station, photos taken and an independent tally of the results was communicated to other polling stations so that the overall final count could be cross-checked and verified. It was difficult for Zanu PF to manipulate and announce fabricated results in such a situation. This is why it took Zanu PF 6 weeks to massage results and call for a rerun. The same thing did not happen in the 2013 elections, with the ZEC citing security concerns, and surprise, surprise – there was no verification of vote tallying.
How the vote tallying was manipulated is for election and polling agents from the opposition to figure out and explain. And if they cannot find this last missing piece of the puzzle, they can at least try to prevent the same vote rigging from happening again in the 2018 elections.
How to prevent the Zanu PF Election Committee (ZEC) from rigging the 2018 elections
For a start, mass countrywide protests should be held calling for the immediate disbanding of the Zanu PF election Committee (ZEC) after their connivance with Zanu PF to disenfranchise the Zimbabwean masses through the electoral theft of 2013 which brought in an illegal regime. The opposition parties should present these findings to SADC and the AU and insist on the immediate dissolution of the current government. A national transition authority should be put in place for now that will be responsible for broad based electoral reforms prior to the 2018 elections.
My suggestion to the opposition parties is to focus on voter registration, vote counting and vote tallying. The following are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely) electoral reforms that can be implemented within a short period of time:
1. Everyone should register, especially the youth between 18 and 29 that make up the bulk of the voting population. I don’t understand Zimbabweans; people can spend all night in the bank queues waiting to withdraw their own money the following morning, yet are unwilling to take to the streets and join those demonstrating for change and a better life. If demonstrating is too much, the least you can do is take the trouble to register and then vote for the change you want to see.
2. The opposition should insist on either extending the voting window being from 07:00 am to 19:00 pm, and that there should be a maximum of 600 registered voters allowed per polling station, (50 votes per hour maximum)
3. The distribution of the number of polling stations is critical. In the HARARE METROPOLITAN province alone, there should be a minimum of 2,250 polls for Harare Metropolitan alone (i.e. 1,125,260/500 = 2,250). That’s 3 times the number of polling stations allocated during the 2013 elections.
4. The location of the polling stations and their GPS coordinates should be put up on the ZEC website along with the new Biometric Voter’s Register for each polling station.
5. The new biometric voter’s register should be checked by all parties, ward by ward, poll station by poll station to ensure no over registering of ghost voters. This should then be signed by all parties and the master copy uploaded onto the ZEC website for scrutiny by the public at large and not just the political parties.
6. Two months should be given for all parties to check and verify the voter’s register before signing it off as this is the key to preventing rigging by Zanu PF.
7. The Biometric Voters System to be implemented should be an automatic system with flexibility of manual counting should there be a power cut at a particular polling station. However, it is important to ensure that the BVS system software not only automatically counts and tallies the votes, but also prints out the ballots which should be deposited into ballot boxes to ensure that manual counting verifies the digitally counted votes.
8. The Biometric Voter System procurement is critical. As a minimum, the BVS should have a proven track record, be tamper proof, have a back-up power supply or uninterrupted power supply (UPS).
9. Voter education is critical, the rural voters should be convinced that their vote using the BVS is a secret, and pilot trials should be held especially in the rural areas to assure them of such.
10. On Election Day, everyone should turn out to vote. Understandably, there is voter apathy because of voter fatigue. The masses have tried to remove Zanu PF from power since 2002 but failed. 2018 is the best and last chance that Zimbabweans will get to remove Zanu PF. Make your vote count and be ready to defend your vote should Zanu PF decide to pull another 2008. The best way to prevent Zanu PF’s rigging is by turning out in full force to register and vote, let’s try to have a 90% turnout for this critical election.
11. At each poll station at ward level, all electoral agents should ensure no double counting, no double voting, they should keep in mind that about 500 votes number of voters per polling station, and that any number of voters above this means that the poll would be invalidated.
12. The results of the next 2018 elections should be posted outside each polling station, a WhatsApp group should be set up so that pictures of the results can be taken and posted on the WhatsApp group. The opposition parties should then begin their own independent vote tallying to ensure that there is no double voting, double counting or manipulation when it comes to tallying up the votes at ward then constituency level.
Opposition Coalition is the only way to prevent Zanu PF from rigging the 2018 elections
In MASHONALAND CENTRAL, WEST & EAST Zanu PF “won” a total of 847,273 votes in the 2013 elections. It’s worth noting that a number of people expelled from Zanu PF for supporting Mai Mujuru were central to this margin of victory in these provinces, whether it was by hook or crook as I’ve described above. This might explain why Mai Mujuru thought she could oust Ol Bob. She appears to have had a lot of support in these provinces. Demographically, if Mai Mujuru has the support of at least half of these MASHONALAND provinces, that’s about 400,000 additional votes for the opposition coalition.
Like it or loathe it, a coalition is the only way to finally bury Zanu PF and bring in a new political and economic dispensation. But first and foremost, Zim PF need to come clean and divulge how exactly Zanu PF double voted, double counted or manipulated the tallying of votes to rig the 2013 elections. By analysing the who’s who of those 89 suspended or expelled from Zanu PF in March 2015, Mai Mujuru’s supposed support base makes interesting reading:
HARARE METROPOLITAN: Amos Midzi – deceased (Epworth winner – 15,468 votes), David Butau (Mbire winner – 19,958 votes), Cdes Tendai Savanhu (Mbare winner – 14,764 votes), Cdes Albertina Bwititi, Varaidzo Mupunga (Harare West loser – 3,530 votes), Christopher Chigumba (Chitungwiza South winner – 8,126 votes), Eva Chaneta, Clyde Mutero, Susan Chuma, Torongo Torongo, Tongai Nheta (Kambuzuma loser-4,165 votes), Noah Mangondo (Harare East loser – 8,190), Angeline Matambanadzo, Prince Shinya, Brian Hwenjere, Andrew Tiriboyi, Munyaradzi Mugomeza, Olivia Mususa and Tendai Diwa
Possibly 7 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
MASHONALAND CENTRAL: Nicholas Goche (Shamva North winner – 19,194 votes), Cdes Luke Mushore, Joseph Mapiki (Shamva South winner – 22,332 votes), Dorothy Mashonganyika, Alice Muropa, Rashiwe Gambiza, Mawodzeka Mujubeki, Stanford Mugari and Titus Manyika.
Possibly 2 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
MASHONALAND EAST: Ray Kaukonde (Marondera Central winner – 9,378 votes), Cde Felix Mhona (Chikomba Central winner – 7,723 votes), Cdes Simba Mudarikwa (Uzumba winner – 21,421 votes), Tendai Makunde (Murehwa North winner – 8,733), Washington Musvaire (Maramba Pfungwe winner – 22,264 votes), Phineas Chihota, George Katsande, Lucky Kandemiri, Vernon Muringayi, John Mushayi, Peter Murwira, Marble Kaundikidza, Taurayi Pasirayi, Getrude Mariwo, Boniface Mutize, Stephen Chiurai, Sithembile Makamba, Petronella Musarurwa, Charity Chakanyuka, Musekiwa Masendeke, Prosperity Danga, Nhamo Chikango and Angeline Mafuta.
Possibly 5 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
MASVINGO: Kudakwashe Bhasikiti (Mwenezi East winner – 18,196 votes), Killian Gwanetsa (Chiredzi South winner – 8,148 votes), Cdes Paul Chimedza (Gutu South winner – 7,927 votes), Denford Masiya (Chiredzi East winner – 8,926 votes), Oliver Huruva, Shylett Moyo, Joshua Matakanure, Mike Musorowegomo, Wilson Makonya, Kenneth Sibanda, Tongai Muzenda (Gutu West winner – 13,499 votes), John Mutomana, Gift Jayaguru, Darlington Chiwa (Chiredzi West winner – 12,655 votes), C. Bhasikiti, M. Mujakachi, M. Demba, S. Majatame, J. Chikupe, F.K. Dera, E. Chapungu, E. Chiduwa, L. Shindi, E. Mangove, Tendai Magomana, Simbarashe Ndakaripei, Mbizvo Rushambwe, Otwell Chikosi and, Last Chisi.
Possibly 6 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
MIDLANDS: Cde Chiratidzo Mabuwa (Mberengwa South winner – 12,358 votes), Cde Francis Nhema, Cdes Tafanana Zhou (Mberengwa North winner – 15,170 votes), Fred Moyo, Tariro Mutingwende, Dorothy Mhangami, Cliff Manungo, Renias Madende, Stephen Ngwenya, Francis Chikwira, Edmond Mkaratigwa, Fadzai Ntabeni, Danisa Mujere, Clara Ngwenya, Aida A. Tongogara, Sheilla Midzi, Theopold Takanai and Simbarashe Zhoake.
Possibly 2 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
MANICALAND: Didymus Mutasa (Headlands winner – 10,975 votes), Munacho Mutezo (Chimanimani West winner – 9,997 votes),
Possibly 2 Constituencies in total for the taking by Zim PF
Others who were expelled or suspended include: Dzikamai Mavhaire, Claudius Makova, Kudakwashe Gope, Olivia Muchena, Munyaradzi Banda, Dougmore Chimukoko, Tranos Huruba, Boniface Karoro.
From the expelled or suspended Zanu PF members who supported Mai Mujuru, there are about 22 possible constituencies that Zim PF can win. And of course, then there are those that are going to abandon the Zanu PF sinking ship once the coalition between MDC and Zim PF is formalized. But unfortunately for the coalition, this only adds up to 70 constituencies won by the full MDC-T, 2 won by the MDC-N and a possible 24 constituencies by Zim PF = 96. Of course keeping in mind that this is based on 2013 rigged election results. This is why it is critical for Morgan to engage Tendai Biti and the PDP. About 22 of those 70 constituencies were donated to Zanu PF when Morgan expelled the splinter MDC. The 96 in total is still not enough to win a rigged election.
It is a big mistake for Morgan not to include Tendai Biti and the PDP in the grand coalition. He must use his brain over his pride. Morgan has to be thick skinned if he is ever to become the next leader of Zimbabwe, we expect magnanimity, humility and the ability to learn to work with those who you don’t get along with, sacrificing your pride for the greater good of Zimbabwe. The PDP has the critical mass of intellect which is sorely lacking from the current proposed coalition. Tendai Biti is a critical cog if the opposition coalition is to draft winning electoral policies for the next election. This is the only way that the rigging can be overcome when the electoral reforms that I have stated above are not implemented by Zanu PF. Always plan for the best and prepare for the worst.
CONCLUSION
With the above, I have provided the opposition parties with their template to countenance the rigging strategy employed by Zanu PF. As for the rest of us Zimbabweans, we have to register to vote and turn up on the day to vote. This is the only way that the opposition coalition stands any chance of winning the next 2018 elections, even if they are rigged.
What I find most worrying is Morgan’s recent announcement that the MDC-T’s strategy will be to focus on the HARARE METROPOLITAN province, as he thinks that this is where the MDC-T will win the national vote if everyone in HARARE registers to vote. Oh Morgan, you’re still not the brightest. Let me help you out so you can at least see the bigger picture. The swing “states” will be MASHONALAND EAST, WEST & CENTRAL provinces where there are about 2.1 million voters. MANICALAND will also be key with another 809,000 votes. Do not underestimate the residual effects of the June 2008 elections which gave Zanu PF a default margin of terror.-Newzimbabwe
