THE similarities in the attitude of the MDC Alliance towards the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Motlanthe Commission of Inquiry into the August 1 post-election violence betrays the Western-created outfit’s determination to tarnish the image of ZANU PF and the country.
If the process of the harmonised elections organised by ZEC was considered free, fair and credible by observers, this would present a favourable picture of Zimbabwe.
And that is exactly what the MDC Alliance did not like.
So the Chamisa-led party decided to attack, not only ZEC as an institution, but also its composition.
Just because the electoral climate was tranquil and conducive to a credible election outcome, the MDC Alliance had to look for an alternative scapegoat.
Hence some of the relentless attacks on ZEC.
When the poll results came out, MDC Alliance rejected them outright and, as expected, the party found backers from its Western allies, the US in particular.
It is this backing by the West, who have their own ulterior motive, which makes this Western surrogate political party behave like a spoilt child.
When MDC Alliance supporters were ‘stupid’ enough to protest the results of the harmonised elections, even before they were due, six people were shot dead.
And this must have been exactly what the MDC Alliance was looking for – an incident that would perpetuate the country’s bad image.
Such an incident would, no doubt, encourage the US and its allies to maintain sanctions against Zimbabwe.
Remember the last time Chamisa and his deputy chairman Tendai Biti were in the US, their mission was to urge Washington not to lift sanctions until ZANU PF was dislodged.
But to make sure the events of August 1 were clarified, President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed a neutral commission to investigate.
Obviously, there were many rumours and outright lies flying around.
The Motlanthe Commission was, therefore, meant to come out with an accurate report .
A repeat of what happened during the just-ended harmonised elections was there for all to see after the commission was appointed.
The MDC Alliance, in conjunction with civil society groups and some mass media houses, were quick to denounce the composition of the commission, doubting its capacity to produce a credible report.
It looked like they were on a mission to intimidate the commissioners into releasing what they considered a ‘favourable’ report – a report that would make the MDC Alliance and its supporters look like saints, with the soldiers and ZANU PF the villains.
This way, the image of the former liberation movement would remain sordid before MDC Alliance allies.
We won’t hazard any guesses as to what the findings of the Motlanthe Commission will be like.
However, like in the ConCourt poll trial, screening the proceedings live on TV was yet another master stroke.
It was possible for viewers to see how some people seemed quite at ease telling outright lies under oath.
There were some who seemed to take the chance to appear on TV as an opportunity to settle old scores with political parties they disliked.
We believe the Motlanthe Commission Report will once more shame those bent on spreading false perceptions about their country.
The results of the July 30 elections did just that.