Harare- Zimbabwe’s Ideas Party of Democracy (IPD) conducted a historic online intra-party election to beat the COVID-19 induced lockdown to elect a new leadership and step a gear towards the 2023 elections.
In a statement following his election as the party president South African based Herbert Chamuka said the online elections, the first of its kind in Zimbabwe were meant to deliver democracy to the legion of IPD supporters.
“Over the weekend, the Ideas Party of Democracy (IPD) conducted the first of its kind online inter-party online elections in Zimbabwe as we beat the lockdown to deliver democracy to our legion of supporters by ushering in a new leadership.
“With Zimbabwe still under a COVID-19 lockdown, we needed to come up with ways to ensure that the elections which we had previously rescheduled, went ahead as planned to enable intra party democracy to prevail,” said Chamuka
He said IPD respects the country’s laws and did not want to expose supporters and the country to the ravaging pandemic hence the successful elections.
“As IPD, we have respect of the laws of the land and we have great care for every citizen hence we did not want to put anyone in harm’s way by exposing them to the ravaging virus which has killed our family members, our friends and neighbors. The lockdown put our democracy to test as we were due for elections but we improvised and we delivered.
“Together with the top leadership of the party and consultations with party supporters, we realized we needed to have online elections which would be fair, credible and democratic. The online elections, which were a huge success, were trial and error but to our surprise, they went on smoothly without any glitches.
“As a democratic party, we realized we could not stop democratic processes within our party as we needed to have a substantial leader in order to kick start our 2023 election campaign. This online election provided that first and important step for us to ensure that we bring democracy to the people. Now that we have passed the test, we are rolling our sleeves and the real work begins,” he said.
Although he emerged the winner in the presidential elections, Chamuka said the real winners are the party cadres who made sure that the processes went smoothly without incidences.
“Their commitment to democracy is something I want to urge everyone, every politician and every political party to emulate and envy. We have hardworking people who are ready to serve the party and country, albeit, in democratic ways.
“That said, now that we have passed this hurdle, IPD is tasked with ensuring that we start working for the betterment of this nation, for every citizen regardless of party affiliation. Zimbabwe Is going through a lot of challenges, most of which have been worsened by the COVID-19. My party has a raft of solutions to some of the challenges we are facing. We have what it takes to take this great country to be where it should. We can deliver a better Zimbabwe.
“However, before anything can be done, Zimbabwe needs to go back to the rule of law, to respecting human rights, to have sanctity over human life, to recognize that we are all equal before the law. Zimbabwe needs a leader who knows that the country belongs to the 16 million Zimbabweans not a few individuals. The national cake must be shared equally. Days of authoritarian rule must be over, we need democratic leaders. We need unifiers and that is what IPD stands for. We are not a party that is fighting anyone, we are trying to bring anyone to the table and find solutions for this nation. A win for one is a win for all.
He added “We are ready to engage with the ruling and opposing parties to look at how we can take Zimbabwe out of the doldrums that it finds itself in. The challenges facing Zimbabwe do not require arrogance but need reasoning. We need to put our heads together to work for our nation.
“As IPD, it is our long-term commitment to the people of Zimbabwe that once we are given the mandate to govern, we will work collectively together to make Zimbabwe the jewel of Africa. Just like the millions of Zimbabweans out there, we want to bring democracy which will usher in a new style of politics in Zimbabwe and IPD is the party to bring that to Zimbabwe. A vote for IPD is an endorsement for democracy.
“Lastly, as the COVID-19 continues to bite, let us all be our brother’s keepers. The virus knows no party affiliation, it knows no color, race, creed, social status.” said the IPD president