Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. OPPOSITION politician Nelson Chamisa has torn into the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) and the African Union (AU) for failing to address the continent’s escalating crisis of disputed elections and military coups.
This comes after the AU endorsed Tanzania’s elections last week in polls that were marred by violence, deadly clashes and accusations of State-sponsored repression, which claimed hundreds of lives.
Tanzania’s incumbent Samia Suluhu Hassan was sworn in yesterday after securing approximately 98% of the vote and earning a fresh five-year term.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has congratulated Hassan on her victory.
In a scathing statement, Chamisa said Sadc needed to be “revamped and reformed” for it to be able to address the challenges faced in the region.
Chamisa said the continent was sliding into democratic decay, citing controversial elections in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Tanzania as evidence of a “growing and disturbing phenomenon in Sadc”.
In 2023, Chamisa lost to Mnangagwa in a disputed election that was declared a sham by observer missions from Sadc and the European Union.
In Gabon, soldiers toppled long-time ruler Ali Bongo after disputed August 2023 polls, placing the military in charge. In Niger, the presidential guard ousted elected leader Mohamed Bazoum in July 2023, throwing the country under military rule.
Burkina Faso has experienced two coups in less than a year, while Mali and Guinea remain under junta after overthrowing elected administrations.
In Mozambique, the disputed 2024 elections triggered deadly protests as opposition supporters clashed with security forces.
Chamisa warned that Africa was experiencing “a serious escalation in military coups, disputed elections and the inability or unwillingness to resolve electoral disputes.”
He said Sadc had been exposed as ineffective, adding that its credibility was compromised by leadership failures within its ranks.
“The previous chair, Zimbabwe, had Mnangagwa, who occupied office through a disputed election which had been condemned by the very Sadc, through its observer mission report. That made him and Sadc incapacitated in resolving the same,” he said.
Chamisa said the situation had been worsened by the ouster of Madagascan President Andry Rajoelina in a military coup, which undermined the regional body’s ability to provide leadership or solutions.
Madagascar took over the rotating chairmanship of Sadc in August this year.
Chamisa accused the AU of abandoning its obligations as the guardian on the continent.
“The AU has been an absent guardian and a missing guardrail. Instead of fulfilling its mandate with and for the African people, it has become a club for the endorsement of illegitimacy, oppression and African people’s marginalisation,” he said.
Chamisa accused ruling parties across the region of running manipulated electoral processes “with the elimination, incarceration and disqualification of genuine and credible opposition figures”.
He said he was alarmed by reports of “abductions, forced disappearances, and violence against civil society”.
Chamisa expressed concern over the excessive use of force against citizens, violence, human rights abuses, internet shutdowns, as well as the killings and injuries perpetrated on innocent citizens.
He condemned electoral manipulation, which includes internet shutdown, disqualification of candidates, withholding of ballots, tampering with voter rolls, intimidation of voters and harassment.
He demanded the release of Tanzania opposition leader Tundu Lissu, who has been incarcerated for almost seven months under Hassan’s leadership.
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