Opposition claims of irregularities 'rubbish'

Opposition claims of irregularities 'rubbish' - Chinamasa

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ZIMBABWE'S Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa on Tuesday dismissed opposition concerns about alleged government plans to rig the forthcoming elections.

"That the playing field is not level, that is utter rubbish," Chinamasa said during a special interview on state television.

Chinamasa said President Robert Mugabe's government had complied with all the demands the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) laid out during talks brokered by South Africa last year.

"We agreed to everything that they said we should do in order to make the playing field level," he said, adding pieces of electoral legislation passed recently were in line with the deal struck at the talks.

"So at the conclusion of it, it was very clear that the playing field has been made level to their satisfaction," he said.

Chinamasa accused the MDC of panicking as the polling day draws near.

"What in fact is evident now is that (MDC leader Morgan) Tsvangirai and his camp is now panicking.

"They see the crowds that our president (Mugabe) is drawing, they see our popularity... they see that they are going to lose," said Chinamasa who gave the interview donning the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (Zanu PF) campaign regalia.

He alleged that the MDC's complaints were a pretext for looming electoral defeat.

"In fact they are going to be wiped out of the political map, they are staring defeat in their face. They are now trying to find excuses to justify that defeat," he said.

The MDC has charged that Mugabe is changing the electoral rules midway through "the game" and acting as both referee and player.

Mugabe, 84, has ruled out the possibility of the main opposition party ever running the southern African country during his lifetime.

Mugabe faces a challenge from MDC leader Tsvangirai and former finance minister Simba Makoni in joint presidential, legislative and local council elections on Saturday.

The vote, expected to test the long-ruling leader's hold on power in one of the country's tightest contests, takes place amid the southern African country's worst ever economic crisis with a record inflation rate of over 100,000 percent. - AFP
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