CCC members optimistic about selection process despite criticism

Rutendo Mapfumo

 Citizen Coalition for Change (CCC) party members have affirmed their faith in the ongoing party selection process that has drawn criticism from some quarters and are hoping the process will produce  candidates who have interests of communities at heart.

 The painstakingly elaborate “meticulous and rigorous” candidate selection process has so far allowed party members to nominate their preferred candidates for president, members of parliament, senators and councillors. According to the body that was tasked to run the candidate selection, the Citizen’s Independent Selection Panel (CISP) the process is now at the vetting phase. However, only party President Chamisa has been announced as party candidate because he was overwhelmingly nominated in all “streets, wards and constituencies across the country.”

Nokuthaba Ncube 19 from Hwange Ward 2 indicated that her nomination was for positive change in the mould of a candidate who has the interest of youths at heart.

“As youths, we are in trouble. The future  is in our hands, and we need to ensure that the future of the youths and that of our children is bright. I have nominated someone whom I think will represent me well as a youth.”

Another party member Timothy Mpala said party members are satisfied with the candidate selection process. 

“The noise is coming from outside the party. We as members are aware of what is happening and we are happy that the party is taking its time to ensure that we get the best possible candidates.”

Turning to the issue of high unemployment in Hwange, Mpala said the area needs leaders who care and have the community at heart.

“A lot is happening in Hwange. Hwange youths have no equal job opportunities as most job opportunities only benefit youths from as far as Harare. Locals are sidelined when it comes to job opportunities,” said Mpala.

The candidate selection process did not get on to a smooth start, as party members waited for hours without being attended to.In Hwange Central Constituency, the process was delayed because the nomination forms were delivered late from the party’s Empumalanga offices.

However, Member of Parliament for the constituency, Daniel Molokele was upbeat about the selection process despite the teething challenges experienced.

 “CCC has set up an independent candidate’s selection panel which will preside over the process and nominees will be given an opportunity to either accept or turn down the nomination. Community members who have signed into our citizen’s membership database shall be consulted to nominate their preferred representative for each category in their respective communities.

Since it was the first time, of course we had a lot of issues ,teething issues in terms of logistics. There were a lot of delays .Fortunately because it wasn’t a primary election or a voting process it was just a nomination where the party was asking for names from the community.

We are looking  forward to the second stage of vetting and from there we do the community based confirmations. The CCC is changing the way the election process works. Now we have candidates from the community through the meetings which were conducted throughout the country,” he said.

Molokele called on   Hwange central members of the community to register to vote, taking note of the restructured wards which changed through the delimitation process.

 “There are now some wards which were restructured due to the delimitation process. Ward 2, 9 and 13 have been restructured and it is advisable for people to register to vote in their respective areas,” he said.

Molokele’s closest challenger, Cosmos Kaboloma said the selection process was fair although it faced logistical challenges. He however let in on his fears of the process being hijacked during the vetting.

“The nomination was fair and we hope the vetting process will also give us fair results because I had a lot of support from all the wards.

The system is okay but the implementation  might be a problem because we may have interested parties interfering to manipulate the process to their advantage,” he said.

The opposition party’s candidate selection process has had its fair share of criticism from selection stakeholders who have accused it of being too “complex”, and slow among other accusations.

Top journalist, Hopewell Chin’ono took a swipe at the slow process by saying while the opposition was dragging its feet in candidate selection, Zanu PF was already on the ground “votebuying.”

There have also been reports that CCC is struggling to find candidates in some rural areas but the party deputy spokesperson, Gift Siziba dismissed the reports as untrue.

In an interview with HSTV, Chamisa hinted that the delay in announcing candidates was deliberate so as to keep the opponent guessing. The party claims that it is avoiding infiltration by keeping cards close to its chest.

Rashid Mahiya of CISP said a date has been set for the caucuses that will happen all over the country after which they will announce the names of successful candidates.

“As we embark on the second stage of candidate selection, it is prudent to assure citizens that all nominated candidates will receive fair and equal opportunities during the process,” said Mahiya in a recent press conference.

The vetting and security check list look into the following; Qualifications in compliance with relevant statutes of Zimbabwe, the constitution, electoral act and CCC Candidate Selection Procedures’ manual; Community standing, track record and performance in communities; Political history and record; Capacity, capability and competence; Security; Integrity; Ethics; Loyalty and service record.

CCC’s candidate selection process comprises of four key milestones which are candidate nomination, candidate vetting, candidate caucuses, and the declaration of successful candidates