Former Harare East legislator Tendai Biti says the Citizens Coalition for Change MPs are not legitimising a flawed election, but are attending Parliament to defend the constitution.
Citizens Coalition for Change has about 103 legislators in the National Assembly from the 2023 general elections.
Its leader Nelson Chamisa who was declared to have come second to President Emmerson Mnangagwa rejected the results arguing that he is the winner and was robbed.
This spurred debate on whether the CCC legislators by attending Parliament were legitimising the result of the same election they are disputing.
However, speaking recently, Biti who is also one of the CCC vice presidents, clarified the issue arguing that they are in there to protect the constitution and zones of autonomy.
‘’Our participation in Parliament does not legitimise a process that was illegitimate, and that was not credible. In political economy, when you are an opposition like us, an alternative movement in a socially dominated framework like ours, when you are fighting one of the most complicated authoritarian regimes, on the continent, you do four things.
‘’First thing you do is you protect zones of autonomy, the second thing you do is you build a credible alternative, the third thing you do is you expose and isolate an opponent, and the fourth thing you do is you stretch your opponent.
‘’I view our participating in this election as protecting a zone of autonomy, that space that we got, those 103 seats that we got we have a right and a duty to protect those zones,’’ he said.
Biti added that Parliament is a very important platform for defending the constitution and citizens interests, and the CCC legislators must participate.
‘’To me, I have been a legislator for a long time. Parliament is a very powerful platform for defending the constitution, for defending citizen interests, and advocating for citizens interest. So to me its not a brainer, the elected MPs, must participate in that platform,’’ he said.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa recently told world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly recently that the elections were free, fair and credible.
He went further to highlight that his party is happy to defend its victory, by proving that the polls were above board, this is despite the fact that SADC Election Observer Mission condemned various aspects the election as not meeting the expected standards
Meanwhile, with regards to the wayforward, the seasoned legal practitioner (Tendai Biti) said he hope that SADC will act on its report concerning the Zimbabwe elections.
He added that dialogue must take place to enable the citizens a soft landing.
‘’So for me there must be dialogue, there must be discussion, I hope SADC will act on its report, and allow a dialogue to take place, so that there is a soft landing for this country.
‘’We cant afford another five years of the same ossification that we have seen in the last five years. As I am talking to you right now thousands and thousands of Zimbabweans are trying to cross the crocodile infested Limpopo River into South Africa, thousands are applying for visas at the British Embassy, at the American Embassy, that is not good enough.
‘’So this election is triggering yet another vicious wave of immigration, illegal and otherwise, we have become the sick-man of the region.
‘’I will submit that lets find a sustainable solution to the Zimbabwean crisis, that sustainable solution requires the fronting by SADC, and requires a dialogue,’’ he said.
