Unfair to blame MPs for Mnangagwa’s choice: Mwonzora on Abigail Mohadi ZEC job

Hopewell Chingono seeks to blame the MDC for the appointment of Mrs Abigail Ambrose-Mohadi by President Emmerson Mnangagwa as Commissioner in ZEC. This is just the usual and cheap propaganda. The record has to be set straight.

Ever since the promulgation of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the MDC has been part and parcel of the interviewing of Commissioners of all Independent Commissions. However, it has never numerically dominated the interviewing panels.

When Priscilla Chigumba was interviewed at Parliament some time ago MDC was represented by Nelson Chamisa, Prosper Mutseyami and Innocent Gonese in the interviewing panel. Why then does Chin’ono not blame them for Chigumba’s appointment?

This year Commissioner Ambrose-Mohadi was shortlisted on the basis of her qualifications which were objectively verified. We did not consider the circumstances of her birth as a basis for her disqualification.

During the interviews the MDC representatives including myself constituted 30% of the interviewing panel. On the basis of partisanship alone, it follows that the MDC could not singularly decide the outcome of interviews.

During the interview, individual panellists assign scores to the candidate. An aggregate score is then prepared for each candidate. This takes into account the score by each member of the panel. The top 15 candidates were then shortlisted.

From the list of the 15 candidates, the President was supposed to appoint the six Commissioners using his own discretion in terms of the constitution. In that final selection, no member of Parliament has any say.

It is unfair to blame any MP for the final choice that the President makes. However, there is no law currently that disallows children of prominent people or politicians from being appointed to public positions.

The procedure regarding the interview of Commissioners was the same this year when we sat in the Ambrose-Mohadi interview as it was when Chamisa, Innocent Gonese and Prosper Mutseyami set in the Chigumba interview.

Douglas Mwonzora