Army Must Respect 2018 Poll Result – Chamisa

The military, which effectively put President Emmerson Mnangagwa into office, must commit to accept his “certain” election defeat, the opposition MDC Alliance has said.

Speaking at a rally in Harare over the weekend, Alliance principal Nelson Chamisa, declared; “Six months from today, we will have a new government”.

He however, said Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) commander, General Philip Valerio Sibanda, must publicly commit to accept the election outcome

General Sibanda was among the senior officers who backed the military intervention that ousted former president Robert Mugabe last month, resulting in Mnangagwa taking over power.

“We want to call Valerio Sibanda on ZTV so that he makes assurances that the army will respect the outcome of the vote,” said Chamisa amid cheers from supporters.

Since taking over power, President Mnangagwa has repeatedly insisted that elections would be free and fair, adding that the international community would be allowed to observe the vote.

But the opposition alliance said it wanted more than mere platitudes from the Zanu PF leader.

“Crocodile (Mnangagwa) does not know what a free and fair election is,” said Chamisa who is represnting he absent Morgan Tsvangirai on the Alliance leadership panel.