Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader Nelson Chamisa made a veiled threat on Wednesday to boycott elections on July 30 if there is no agreement between the independent election agency and political parties on ballot papers. Chamisa and his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) are the main rivals to President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the first presidential and parliamentary vote since Robert Mugabe resigned last November following an army coup. The MDC is wary of any attempt to put it at a disadvantage to Mnangagwa and the ruling ZANU-PF party, insisting there be a deal on how to design, print and store ballot papers.
Chamisa said his party rejected the papers being printed by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC).
“We do not and will not accept the current ballot paper that has been printed without our participation,” he told reporters.
Asked whether he would boycott the polls if ZEC ignored his party’s demands, Chamisa said: “There will be no election, there can’t be an election. Choose what to call it, but there can’t be an election.”
Full Article: Zimbabwe opposition says ‘no election’ without ballot paper deal | Reuters.