Zimbabwean Presidential Candidates Sign Peace Agreement
By Victor Ochien
After the explosion that took place over the weekend, which narrowly missed Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa; several presidential candidates, leaders, and political parties, condemned the assassination attempt and signed a peace agreement. The agreement signed was their way of promising a peaceful campaign as they gear towards the July elections. Even though both the president and the leader of the biggest opposition party, Nelson Chamisa, were not present during the signing of the agreement, their representatives were present and signed it on their behalf. The agreement, which is essentially a pledge to violence-free, credible and transparent election, was drafted by the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC).
The commission was established to promote peace and reconciliation by creating mechanisms that bring solutions capable of resolving violent conflicts that occurred in the past elections, while ensuring that there is no repeat of the same. The chairperson of the commission, Selo Masole Nare emphasized the importance of the peace agreement pointing that it was a fine step towards ensuring stability, peace, and development in the country. “The peace pledge presents a new dawn in Zimbabwe’s political party engagement. Peaceful elections are a key ingredient for long term peace and development in the country. The signing of the peace pledge is a demonstration of the political parties’ commitment to enforcing the code of conduct,” Nare said.
The July 30, 2018 election has 23 presidential candidates, and this will be the first election since 1980.that doesn’t feature former president Robert Mugabe as a presidential candidate.
