Zimbabwe: Still Waiting On A President

High Court judge, Justice Tendai Uchena has reserved judgment on an application by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to have the ZEC ordered by the High Court to announce the result of the poll.

The nation, and indeed the international community, have kept their ears open in anticipation of the announcement of the results but the ZEC has managed to keep all players and interested parties guessing on the likely outcome of the election.

United States Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Tuesday that ZEC’s delays had exacerbated suspicions that Mugabe will again manipulate the outcome of the elections.

“The resulting defeat of the ruling Zanu-PF party in parliamentary elections underscores the Zimbabwean people’s rejection of the failed policies and the widespread suffering caused by Robert Mugabe's repressive rule. Zimbabwe now appears poised to hold a run-off election for the presidency, which Mugabe has vowed to contest. This election must be conducted in a fully transparent manner, free from intimidation and consistent with the rule of law,” Obama said.

“These elections have the potential to be truly historic, if indeed they are fully free and fair. Their conduct and outcome will determine if Zimbabwe's economic and humanitarian crisis is deepened or if the door is finally opened to a new and more hopeful chapter in Zimbabwe's history," he added.

South African president Thabo Mbeki is on record as saying there was need for the international community to wait for the outcome of the verification and collation processes that ZEC is undertaking at the moment. Mbeki is known for his quiet diplomacy on the crisis in Zimbabwe.

In contrast, Jacob Zuma, South Africa’s African National Congress leader, however, deplored the delays by ZEC.