Several opposition parties have joined forces to revive the National Electoral Reform Agenda (NERA) to push for electoral reforms with Douglas Mwonzora selected as its spokesperson.
However, some politicians believe that the MDC-T leader is trying to revive his dwindling political career by reinventing himself as the leader of opposition parties.
On 18 January, several representatives of political parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Harare, and on Wednesday 24 January 2024, NERA members will be in Bulawayo to meet with political leaders in Matabeleland to complete the signing process.
However, some politicians claim that Mwonzora is “grasping at straws after losing relevance in terms of real politics” and wonder “what reforms NERA will implement that the opposition failed to implement in Parliament.”
They also warned that opposition parties should “avoid jumping into bed with strange partners and suspicious characters.”
Other parties, such as ZAPU, have chosen not to participate in NERA and are “disturbed” that their leader, Sibanagelizwe Nkomo, was elected Secretary for Policy and Research without party approval or notification prior to the public unveiling of the new NERA executive.
“ZAPU did not sign the MOU. Our engagement was intended to promote dialogue and understanding as was always the case in such situations, but our decision not to sign the MOU reflects our commitment to independent decision-making as a party under the supervision of our National Executive Council,” he added. ZAPU Deputy Spokesperson Washington Jamila who noted that ZAPU attended NERA meetings “as a gesture of cooperation for the betterment of Zimbabwe”.
ZAPU remains committed to the democratic process and will continue to engage in initiatives that align with our principles and vision for Zimbabwe’s future,” Jamila said.
“However, it is disingenuous, misleading and wrong on the part of the NERA organizers to assign a task to our president knowing clearly that we are not a member of that organisation,” he added.
In an interview with CITE, Mwonzora said the opposition parties decided to revive NERA after the August elections last year, as they saw the need to challenge the new demarcation process.
“It has become imperative for political actors to find each other, and after the August elections, we began serious discussions on reviewing NERA and on January 18, 2024, we signed the first batch of politicians and civil society. We are now targeting political leaders in Matabeleland to complete the signing process,” he said. .
“And then we move on to the work of NERA, which is to advocate for electoral reform in the country.”
Mwonzora denied claims that he was trying to remake his political career, saying: “People will always criticize others when they are trying to do something good for the country.”
“It is clear that this country needs electoral reforms and those who criticize us have done nothing about electoral reform. This issue of electoral reform was open to anyone who wanted it. “The fact that we came up with this and are trying to revive it, you will always find condemnation.”
The MDC-T leader admitted that he had also heard reports that NERA was receiving funding from Zanu PF but said they were not true.
“I don’t know to what end, but these criticisms will always come. Haters will always be there, but what is important is that we must do what is in the interest of our country, and now our country needs electoral reforms,” Mwonzora said.
Regarding ZAPU’s fears of being “dragged” into NERA, Mwonzora stated that “the positions announced at the first meeting are proposals, and individual leaders are free to adopt them or not.”
“ZAPU was already represented in Harare. We are not sure how they dealt with their representation, but it was represented. We do not believe there is any objection to ZAPU participating in electoral reforms. But we have not heard from them yet,” the MDC-Texas leader said.
He also admitted that there was a possibility of NERA infiltration but expressed hope that “everyone will be honest.”
“A lot is happening in Zimbabwe. I cannot vouch for individuals, whether they are in NERA or outside NERA for that matter. There are people who have questionable dealings in this country who are outside NERA, so we are now bound by the memorandum of understanding that we signed as political parties,” Mwonzora said. “We cannot know who is real and who is not at this time.”
NERA was formed in 2015 to specifically deal with the absence of electoral reforms in 2013 such as disputed elections, electoral malpractices such as violence, fraud and others.
“NERA included more than one political party and its first interaction was with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) when it was still under the administration of Justice Rita Makarau. NERA negotiated the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) system and was also involved in the procurement of machinery and infrastructure,” Mwonzora said.
However, NERA died naturally in 2018 as a result of succession issues within the MDC-T following the death of leader Morgan Tsvangirai, Mwonzora added, noting that electoral reform was still absent. Site
