Rigging Now Part Of Zimbabwe’s Political DNA, Says Chamisa After Parliament Passes CAB3
Opposition politician Nelson Chamisa has described the voting in Parliament as a stark reminder of the crisis facing Zimbabwe, calling it a farce that lays bare a breakdown in governance and constitutional order.
He said the country is dealing with discredited national processes and rigged outcomes, which, in his viewpoint, point to a complete collapse of the social contract.
Chamisa claimed that what is unfolding shows a serious erosion of institutional integrity and independence.
The subversion and sidelining of citizens has reached a new level, he argued, leading to bizarre outcomes and brazen manipulation.
He said manufactured and coerced consent, achieved through contrived and purchased outcomes, is evidence of a self-delusional tyranny.
Chamisa added that developments since the disputed 2023 elections show that rigging is no longer just a physical act limited to polling day.
Rigging has become psychological and systemic, he said. It is now part of the political DNA under leaders he described as unelected and unelectable. At the heart of it all, he argued, is a fear of the citizens.
“The crisis in Zimbabwe is a crisis of manipulation and rigging of national processes and outcomes,” said Chamisa.
“What we have seen is the rigging of national processes. The rigging of outcomes.
“The rigging of the will and choice of the citizens to choose their leaders and determine how they are governed. The rigging of sentiment and opinion.
“This is why citizens are strangely bombarded—almost to the point of undermining citizen rights—with adverts and jingles for an imposed and unpopular bill.
“Anything that has to be advertised is not popular and not from the people. Advertising reveals an alien imposition on a people.”
Chamisa said the voting in Parliament highlights what is fundamentally wrong with Zimbabwe’s politics.
He said it dramatises a failure of governance and a deep breakdown of the constitutional order, which he believes lies at the heart of the crisis.
Chamisa argued that citizens must come together to fix the core problem: a broken social contract between the governed and the governing.
All national processes, including elections, referendums and public hearings, must happen in conditions of freedom, peace, tolerance and inclusivity, he said.
