LOCAL election watchdogs have called on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to pilot innovative ways of running elections during COVID-19 pandemic saying an indefinite suspension of polls was a violation of the Constitution.
Zec last week announced the suspension of elections citing COVID-19 measures announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to curb the spread of the deadly virus.
The suspension of the polls has caused the postponement of local government elections in Chiredzi (ward 16) and Umzingwane (ward 14) that were scheduled for April.
In a paper titled How to Conduct Elections amid COVID-19: Options for Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (Zesn) lists a number of alternatives taking due regard to all COVID-19 preventive measures.
Voter and civic education, accreditation of observers, voters’ roll inspection and electioneering by candidates and political parties could be done using available ICT technologies, Zesn argued.
Zesn, however, quickly admitted that sorely relying on ICT technologies had negatives, and “would need to be considered in light of internet penetration and accessibility, the high cost of data bundles or those without smart phones” in Zimbabwe.
“For a start, innovative ways of working around the electoral cycle with minimum face to face interactions should be piloted,” Zesn said in its position paper.
