ELECTORAL Court Judge Justice Samuel Deme on Wednesday 19 July 2023 nullified the decision by Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to veto Elisabeth Valerio, the United Zimbabwe Alliance (UZA) political party leader from contesting as a presidential candidate for the presidential elections scheduled for next month.
On 23 June 2023, Valerio filed an appeal in the Electoral Court challenging the decision by the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court, which on 21 June 2023 declined to register her as a presidential candidate for general elections scheduled for 23 August 2023.
In her appeal, Valerio, who was represented by Andrew Makoni, Alec Muchadehama and Jeremiah Bamu of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, argued that the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court had erred in rejecting her nomination papers when sufficient evidence had been presented that a deposit of the prescribed nomination fee equivalent to US$20 000 had been paid through a bank transfer amounting to ZWL138 531 528.
Makoni, Muchadehama and Bamu wanted the Electoral Court to set aside the decision of the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court to reject Valerio’s nomination as a candidate for election to the office of president and declare her as validly nominated as a candidate and for the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court, ZEC Chief Elections Officer Utoile Silaigwana, ZEC Chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba and ZEC to take all the necessary steps to ensure that Valerio is recorded as a candidate for election to the office of the president.
Valerio also listed some presidential nominees including ZANU PF political party leader Emmerson Mnangagwa, Citizens Coalition for Change Zimbabwe political party leader Nelson Chamisa, MDC political party leader Douglas Mwonzora, National Constitutional Assembly political party leader Professor Lovemore Madhuku and former ZANU PF political party Political Commissar Saviour Kasukuwere, among the respondents.
In response, the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court, Silaigwana, Justice Chigumba and ZEC, who were represented by Tawanda Kanengoni, opposed Valerio’s appeal and argued that she be barred from contesting the presidential elections.
On Wednesday 19 July 2023, Justice Deme allowed Valerio’s appeal after setting aside the decision of the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court to reject her nomination as a candidate for election to the office of president for the purposes of the presidential election.
The Electoral Court Judge declared Valerio as having been validly nominated as a candidate for election to the office of president for the purposes of the presidential election set for 23 August 2023.
Justice Deme ordered the Presiding Officer of the Nomination Court, Silaigwana, Justice Chigumba and the elections management body to take all necessary steps to ensure that Valerio is recorded as a candidate for election to the office of president for the purposes of the presidential election scheduled for 23 August 2023 and to be reflected as such on election day.
The Electoral Judge ruled that the alleged failure of Valerio’s payment to be cleared on the same day when she effected her payment to ZEC, was a banking challenge as she had religiously instructed her bank to make the transfer of funds to ZEC’s bank account and therefore it would be unreasonable to argue otherwise and disqualify her from contesting the presidential elections.
ENDS
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights
Kodzero/Amalungelo House
No. 103 Sam Nujoma Street, Harare, Zimbabwe
Phone: (+263 8677005347, +263 242 764085/705370/708118
Email: info@zlhr.org.zw
www.zlhr.org.zw
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