HARARE – The Constitutional Court will be judged on its impartiality in its handling of an election petition by MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa, who disputes President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s thin margin victory, the United States ambassador to Zimbabwe said.
Brian Nicols, who replaced Harry Thomas in July, said the nine Constitutional Court judges who will shortly deliberate on the case will owed it to the people of Zimbabwe to reach a fair and just judgment.
“The courts will have to prove to the people of Zimbabwe that they are weighing the facts of the case and considering them carefully and rendering an impartial judgment,” Ambassador Nicols told reporters Wednesday after paying a courtesy call on Mnangagwa.
“Whether they are impartial is a question that will be answered by the performance of the courts, rather than me or any other person giving their opinion.”
Chamisa challenged Mnangagwa’s 50.8 percent outright victory at the Constitutional Court on August 10. He accuses the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission of fiddling numbers to hand the win to the Zanu PF leader, while giving him a 44.3 percent share of the vote.
Mnangagwa, on Wednesday, fought back when he filed his response, insisting he won fairly.
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Mnangagwa and Chamisa separately on August 7, asking them to settle the dispute through legal means.
He added that “any legal decision taken by the court on the results would need to be independent”.
