Vol 54 No 18 | ZIMBABWE The waiting game begins 6th September 2013 ZANU-PF restrains its exultation at electoral victory and the MDC its gloom as both contemplate the vast challenges ahead Opposition reactions after President Robert Mugabe’s re-election and inauguration have lacked drama. Movement for Democratic Change supporters in urban strongholds believe they were robbed of victory on 31...
Vol 54 No 18 | ZAMBIAZIMBABWE KK cuts a dash 6th September 2013 The Movement for Democratic Change’s application to the Constitutional Court to void the elections created uncertainty over the timetable for the inauguration of President Robert Mugabe and, with...
Vol 54 No 17 | ZIMBABWE Inside ZANU-PF's electoral coup 13th August 2013 It was a tactical masterclass from Robert Mugabe and his high command. The MDC floundered, hit by trickery, bad planning and split votes Harare has been eerily quiet since the elections, in shock at the Movement for Democratic Change's disastrous electoral performance. Former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's triumphalist eve-of-poll rally had...
Vol 54 No 17 | ZIMBABWE Test for Mugabenomics 22nd August 2013 ZANU-PF may now relish ruling on its own but it will have to dig very deep for answers to a deteriorating economy President Robert Mugabe’s victory in the 31 July elections has not settled the uncertainties surrounding Zimbabwe’s political and economic future. It may even have heightened them. Post-election nervousness...
Vol 54 No 16 | ZIMBABWE Fury follows calm elections 1st August 2013 Prime Minister Tsvangirai rejects reports of a ZANU-PF victory in the elections, claiming the party had engineered a ‘monumental fraud’ The stage is set for days, perhaps weeks, of confrontation following claims by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and local monitoring groups of extensive rigging in the 31 July...
Vol 54 No 16 | ZIMBABWE Gono on the spot over oil deals 30th July 2013 An investigation by Africa Confidential, The Telegraph and Global Witness has revealed suspicious payments to central bank governor Gideon Gono’s children The business affairs of the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), Gideon Gono, are back in the headlines since evidence emerged that three of his children...
Vol 54 No 15 | ZIMBABWE Rushing and cheating 19th July 2013 A tightened election timetable with almost a third of eligible voters missing from the register leaves plenty of space for a nationwide gerrymander It was uncharacteristically foolish of President Robert Mugabe to fast-track the election date to 31 July, in the face of protests from some in his own party and...
Vol 54 No 15 | ZIMBABWE Dress rehearsal vote 19th July 2013 The prospects for free, fair and transparent elections on 31 July took another knock with the chaotic ‘special votes’ on 14-15 July. The problems were mainly logistical, stemming...
Vol 54 No 14 | ZIMBABWE Election fever and finance 5th July 2013 Even if ZANU-PF loses the argument over the election date, its business and military backers put it ahead of the MDC The Constitutional Court will soon announce its decision on granting an extension to the 31 July election date. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has been pressing on...
Vol 54 No 14 | ZIMBABWE Diamond votes 5th July 2013 The death in a car accident of Edward Chindori-Chininga, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Mining and Minerals, came within days of its damning report on revenue...