Maravi

(NEWZIMBABWE) Masiyiwa’s bid to thwart vote rigging

COMMENT - How are election results compiled by the MDC more reliable than results collected by the ECZ? The MDC is very fond of using the 'the elections were stolen' charge as a political tool. Why would data from the opposition party be more reliable?

Masiyiwa’s bid to thwart vote rigging
05/09/2011 00:00:00
by Gilbert Nyambabvu

ECONET Wireless founder Strive Masiyiwa actively worked with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC-T party to “develop a sophisticated plan” to prevent President Robert Mugabe from "rigging" the 2008 general elections, it has emerged.

The revelations, contained in secret US embassy dispatches leaked by whistleblower website WikiLeaks, may help explain the animosity between Zanu PF and the South Africa-based businessman.

Masiyiwa allegedly detailed his plan to US embassy officials in Pretoria during meetings held on March 19, 2008, according to a report by the then US Ambassador to South Africa, Eric Bost.

Said Bost: “Masiyiwa has created a parallel vote count center, based in Johannesburg, that will report the results publicly as soon as they are available, independent of and in advance of, any Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) announcements.

“The plan works like this: Once the results are announced at each polling place, the MDC agents will text message or call in the results to a Zimbabwe cell phone number (Masiyiwa and the MDC are ensuring that all their agents have access to cell phones or even satellite phones as necessary, in the event that the local network is interrupted).

"The call will be secretly rerouted to a computer centre in Johannesburg, where Masiyiwa has compiled a team of technical experts to enter the results into a database.

“MDC observers will also count the number of people who enter each local polling station and will compare this number with the local precinct vote count, highlighting discrepancies. The center will then post the results on an Internet site as they come in, essentially pre-empting the Zimbabwe Election Commission results and any ill-intention of Mugabe to falsely claim victory.

"Masiyiwa's team will send the Internet link to diplomats and journalists once the results are tabulated.”
Bost said he was confident Masiyiwa’s plan, which is illegal under Zimbabwean law, could work.

“(The plan) plays to Masiyiwa's strength as an engineer and problem solver. His technical expertise and ownership of Zimbabwe's Econet cellular phone company, with coverage throughout the country, places him in a unique position to pull this off,” he said.

In addition, Masiyiwa is also said to have put together a package of financial rewards for “low-level” election officials who reported attempts to rig the election by Zanu PF.

“In addition to the anti-rigging effort, Masiyiwa is funding campaign materials for the MDC, which are being printed in South Africa and smuggled into Zimbabwe,” Boost wrote.

The Econet Wireless chief, blasted in another cable by MDC-T treasurer Roy Bennett for wielding “too much” influence on MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai, also played a key role in moves to form a coalition government following the violent and disputed 2008 elections.

He allegedly claimed in meetings with US officials to have drafted a power-sharing deal under which Mugabe would serve as a ceremonial President with Tsvangirai coming in as Prime Minister.

Mugabe reportedly accepted the deal “in principle” although Masiyiwa was concerned that “South African President Thabo Mbeki (could) attempt to impose his own agreement which would be more advantageous to Zanu PF”.

“Masiyiwa said that an intermediary had presented the draft agreement to Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Gideon Gono who had in turn presented it to Mugabe. Gono told the intermediary that he had discussed it with Mugabe and Mugabe's wife, Grace.

“Both Mugabe and Grace reportedly were agreeable to the agreement with several amendments, including that Mugabe would be allowed to serve as President indefinitely and would not have to retire at a certain time,” Ambassador Boost wrote.

Labels: MDC, VOTERIGGING, WIKILEAKS

posted by MrK @ 7:18 PM