Harare — The Zimbabwe government has agreed partially to comply with a High Court ruling extending the vote in the presidential election for a third day on Monday. The announcement came in a late night broadcast on state radio, hours after the authorities had indicated they would appeal the High Court decision.
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change, led by Morgan Tsvangirai who is challenging Robert Mugabe for the presidency, had petitioned the court, seeking an extension of voting after long delays prevented tens of thousands from casting their ballot at the weekend.
The MDC had asked for polling stations in its strongholds in the capital Harare, and nearby Chitungwiza, to remain open for at least another day on Monday. But the court decision ordered that voting centres nationwide should open for an extra day to allow people to vote.
In the one o'clock radio bulletin early on Monday morning, quoting the justice minister Patrick Chinamasa, the news reader said: "The government will comply with the order in Harare (the capital) and (nearby) Chitungwiza. It is complying to avoid confusion. Comrade Chinamasa has said it is impossible to comply with the order to extend the vote nationwide, because in some areas, polling has already closed and ballot boxes have already been returned."
But the radio bulletin may confuse would-be voters, because it said the government had agreed only to the vote continuing in the capital and Chitungwiza and not, as they were expecting, in other parts of Zimbabwe.
By chopping and changing its initial position at the dead of night, the government is keeping weary Zimbabweans and the opposition on their toes. Most people would have gone to bed on Sunday, expecting the authorities to challenge the MDC's court victory in the morning. They may now wake up on Monday not quite knowing whether or not they have the right to vote, and where, if they have not already done so.
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The government's detractors see this as a further strategy by the authorities to thwart voters who, however, appeared determined to wait as long as it took to enter polling stations on Sunday, despite the frustrating delays on Saturday.
Shortly after the court ruling on Sunday, police shut down polling stations that had stayed open late, after the scheduled 7pm closing time and told voters to return on Monday.
The opposition has accused Mugabe's government of deliberately reducing the number of polling stations in Harare and other urban MDC bastions to improve Mugabe's chances of winning the election and deny MDC supporters the vote. The president draws most of his support from the rural areas, where polling proceeded smoothly at the weekend, with more than enough centres to accommodate the voters.
