Chinamasa hits back at ZESN, challenges elections group to disclose funding sources
By Staff Writer
THE tiff between the ruling Zanu-pf party Treasurer General, Patrick Chinamasa and the Zimbabwe Elections Support Network (ZESN) has taken a new twist with the former insisting that the organ’s hands are dirty.
Last week, Chinamasa dared opposition parties Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) and MDC not to accept the alleged foreign donation for the training of 12 500 Election Agents ordering law enforcement agents to monitor flow of funds into Zimbabwe.
He claimed the elections group had received a hefty package from foreign countries meant to service all political parties by training political agents on their behalf, but Zanu PF had since turned down the offer saying the donation is illegal and a direct interference in Zimbabwe’s electoral processes.
Said Chinamasa; ““It has come to the notice of the Zanu PF Department of Finance that the UK, France, Australia, USAID, Sweden, Japan, the US Embassy in Harare, the USA based National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the EU, USA and UK funded Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) and Elections Resource Centre (ERC) have announced that they are putting together a donation US$10m for the training of 12 500 Election Agents for each of the Political Parties participating in the forthcoming Harmonised Elections.
However, ZESN rubbished the claims, instead insisting that it has and will never wish to train party agents as such conduct is inconsistent with their mandate.
But in a response this week, Chinamasa insisted that his case is still on as he challenged the two observer groupings to come out clean on their funding sources.
“On my return to the office on Monday, 26 June 2023, from our highly successful ZANU PF National Election Campaign Launch in Mutema, Chipinge District, held on Saturday, 24 June 2023, I found a protest letter from the ZESN on my desk,” he said.
Chinamasa accused ZESN of unnecessarily crying foul as he challenged the organ to declare the sources of its funding.
“What they deliberately failed to respond to was the irrefutable fact in my press statement that they are foreign-funded and sponsored.
“I challenge ZESN, in the interest of transparency, to disclose their sources of funding. Let ZESN reveal their sponsors/financial backers, and I will tell you who they really are and what their declared and undeclared mandate is.
“Those who have eyes, let them ‘eye,’ and those who have ears, let them ‘ear.’ Nokuti hatigoni kurega kutaura izvo takaona nezvotakanzwa (we can’t remain quiet on what we have seen and heard),” he added.
