Former Mt Pleasant constituency legislator and Citizen Coalition for Change (CCC) spokesperson Advocate Fadzayi Mahere will not be contesting in the upcoming by-election in Mt Pleasant.
The seat became vacant when Mahere resigned from parliament right after the Citizens Coalition for Change leader Nelson Chamisa had resigned from the party.
Mahere contested for the seat in the August 2023 elections under the CCC banner and won ahead of other contestants.
In 2023, was her second attempt to run for the seat after her first attempt as an independent candidate had failed in 2018.
At the end of January 2024, Mahere submitted her resignation to parliament, five months after voters endured queues awaiting late-deployed ballot papers by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.
In a post on her X line Mahere said she will not run in the April elections.
“After many consultations and personal reflection, I have decided that I will not be running in the upcoming by-election. The conditions that drove me to resign in the first place have not changed.
Mahere stresses that her resignation stems from disrespect for votes cast in August 2023, refusal by the Speaker of Parliament to address national issues, violent actions against MPs, and selective rules.
The former legislator added, “In fact, we see the further desecration of the August House by the swearing in of characters such as Sengezo Tshabangu who were front and centre of spitting on the will of the people.
“I maintain that, in its current form, Parliament does not represent the will of the people.
“I remain committed to the cause of a truly democratic Zimbabwe and will remain active, engaged and vocal on the issues that matter to the common person.”
The nomination court has scheduled the upcoming by-election for March 26, 2024.
