NEW LEVEL OF DICTATORSHIP: Using elections to kill democracy

Renowned political commentator Dr Pedzisai Ruhanya believes today’s dictators in developing world are using elections to destroy democracy.

Quoting Schedler, Ruhanya says electoral authoritarian regimes hold regular multiparty elections for parliament and the chief executive, but they violate liberal-democratic minimum standards of freedom, fairness, and integrity in so systematic and profound ways as to render elections instruments of authoritarian rule, rather than instruments of democracy.

“Schedler (2006) submits that today the most common form of political regime in the developing world is electoral authoritarianism.

“Electoral authoritarian regimes hold regular multiparty elections for parliament and the chief executive.

“Yet they violate liberal-democratic minimum standards of freedom, fairness, and integrity in so systematic and profound ways as to render elections instruments of authoritarian rule, rather than instruments of democracy,” he says.

He adds: “The idea of democracy has become so closely identified with elections that we are in danger of forgetting that the modern history of representative elections is a tale of authoritarian manipulations as much as it is a saga of democratic triumphs.

“Historically, in other words, elections have been an instrument of authoritarian control as well as a means of democratic governance. – Schedler 2002.”

Zimbabwe in 2023, held elections which were roundly condemned by observer missions including the Southern African Development Community, African Union, European Union and others.

The polls were deemed to have failed to meet the minimum guidelines governing democratic elections.

Zwnews