The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) is facing serious questions again. The story is about how ZEC said it had not printed the ballot papers for the presidential election. But this story changed when Douglas Mwonzora, a leader of the MDC-T, a small opposition party, decided to leave the race. By pulling out of the election, Mwonzora exposed ZEC’s secret actions and raised worries about whether ZEC was following the law for the upcoming election on August 23.

When Mwonzora decided to leave, ZEC quickly said that it was too late for him to do so. But we need to look closely at what ZEC said and did. ZEC has not always followed the law. The rush to stop Mwonzora from leaving the race was not because ZEC wanted to respect the law. Instead, it seemed that ZEC wanted to hide the fact that they had already printed the ballots without following proper legal steps.

There’s more to the story. An independent candidate named Saviour Kasukuwere also accused ZEC of breaking the law. He said that ZEC printed the ballot papers before the legal case about his removal from the race was finished. This goes against the rules of the constitution.

If ZEC allowed Mwonzora to leave, they would have had to reprint the ballot papers without his name. This would have been a big and expensive job. With only 15 days left before the election, reprinting the ballots would have been very difficult. ZEC seems more worried about the time and money it would take to reprint than about doing what is right. So, they argued that it was too late for Mwonzora to leave, using the law to protect themselves.

But this legal argument seems to be just an excuse. ZEC claimed that a candidate could not leave the race 21 days before the election. This law helped ZEC hide its mistakes and continue with its plans without being caught. ZEC is not just trying to protect the election process but also trying to protect its reputation and hide what it has been doing behind the scenes.

ZEC’s push to keep Mwonzora in the race benefits them. It looks like they are trying to hide the truth and avoid fixing their mistakes. ZEC has not always followed the rules and this makes people wonder if they are really committed to a fair election. By pushing their own story, ZEC is putting its interests above those of the people and the law. This brings up big questions about whether the upcoming election will really be fair.

People across the country are watching these events unfold. Mwonzora’s decision to leave has accidentally shown some of the secret things ZEC has been doing. While ZEC says that it is following the law, its actions tell a different story.

Mwonzora’s withdrawal has shown what ZEC really cares about. ZEC’s response shows that it wants to protect itself more than it wants to be honest or follow the rules. As we get closer to election day, the people of Zimbabwe are watching closely. They want a fair election that follows the constitution and respects democratic values.