Zimbabwean opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, has commended South Africa’s electoral commission, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) for its “professionalism” during the neighbouring country’s current electoral cycle.
South African voters will go to the polls to elect a 400-member National Assembly tomorrow, 29 May. The newly-elected Members of Parliament will then elect the country’s next president.
Posting on X, Chamisa said the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) should learn how to run elections from South Africa’s IEC. He wrote:
While no institution is 100% perfect, I commend the independence, extent of integrity, and level of professionalism exhibited by the [Independent Electoral Commission] during this election cycle thus far.
The standard set has been fantastic, especially the transparency, accountability, and approachability of the IEC of South Africa.
The political and election environment in South Africa has been a template for integrity and fairness to be emulated by all others elsewhere especially [Zimbabwe Electoral Commission].
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I’m impressed by how SA conducted the voting process for citizens in the diaspora displaying excellence and global best practices.
Holding credible, unrigged, legitimate and undisputed elections is a key tenet and facet of a New Africa.
The IEC SA has provided an excellent template and source of inspiration giving valuable lessons for election management bodies elsewhere, particularly in Zimbabwe.
State institutions serve as the guardrails and guarantors of functioning and flourishing democracies. Institutions must be free from partisan poison, enclave politics and partocracy.
They must be free to perform their patriotic and constitutional duties allowing citizens to flourish in functioning democracies.
ZEC has faced significant criticism, particularly during the 2023 elections. It was accused of gerrymandering and withholding the Voters Roll in the run-up to the elections and failure to avail ballot papers on voting day.
Gerrymandering refers to the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a particular party, group, or socioeconomic class within a constituency.
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