ZEC IS NOT IN CONTROL

The scandalous pathological, mishandling of information by ZEC on the number of registered voters as of yet raises eyebrows. The Zanu Pf Camp wants to attain a number of 5million votes in their favour whilst the MDC is looking to add 6 million. The statistical data presented by ZEC doesn’t even reveal progress towards ensuring the most important civic duty is well executed and the right to vote is diligently exercised

This is clear case of political naïve; we have to trust those who are charged with leading our public institutions that they will do the right thing. The maladministration of ZEC and poor handling of figures by the board in national elections has an embarrassing history characterised with compelling electoral rigging, with demise to underpin democratic values. ZEC approach to affairs is too political as compared to the apolitical nature the institution should possess, it has become a tool to dishearten, dishonour and polarise a culture of apathy from the electorate to suppress their level of confidence prior to the upcoming election which is a year away whilst elevating the agenda of ZANU PF by down-crushing the message of the opposition parties in regard to the 2023 elections

The global voice on political participation in advanced democracies have been concerned with decreasing levels of civic engagement , declining electoral turnout , and eroding trust in representative institutions , parties and politicians. In regard to curb these , increase in awareness campaigns and grassroots outreach programs on Participation have produced compelling results , ZEC and its sub-structures are lackadaisically apprehending the issue to motivate the electorate to vote as present statistics on those who have registered to vote and the funds injected to ensure awareness campaigns are justly carried out mismatch , The top down approach within ZEC opens up avenues of corruption whilst aligning the institution with one party despite the apolitical expectations of public institutions.

In our society, observers have pointed out that citizens have become estranged from politics as a result of the electoral board (ZEC) for failing to timely inform the public genuinely concerning the numbers of registered voters as of now, the information provided sounds more of a rumour than a well backed series of present facts in regard to voter registration in Zimbabwe. Millenials are said to be abandoning elections and abstaining from mainstream politics without a clear commitment to traditional exercises of democratic citizenship like voting, joining political parties or attending rallies endanger the legitimacy and sustainability of contemporary political institutions.

We can only be patient , the strategy will unfold .The dictatorship of our time is very sophisticated .In a democracy , the collective power of citizens is greatly understood when millions vote to drive transformation and change , the presence of a government is to ensure this happens . It raises an eyeball when the appointed government fails to make this democratic value an integral part of nationalism to drive state and nation building

Authoritarian regimes trigger moral panic to cloud the dominant understanding of the electorate today and redefine political participation but whether reflective of the democratic aspirations or authoritarian nostalgia of Zimbabweans, these moments reveal that slowly the road to an apathetic society keeps on widening