Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe asks for vote recount
Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe has reportedly ordered a vote recount
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Sunday, 06, Apr 2008 10:13
Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe has reportedly ordered a recount into the presidential vote.
State media has reported that the incumbent head of state had asked the country's electoral commission to delay the announcement of the results so that a recount can be conducted. The state-run Sunday Mail newspaper adds that the governing Zanu PF party wanted a new ballot count because there had been "errors and miscalculations".
There have also been reports that Mr Mugabe's party had rejected an approach to join a national unity government from opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
Today the high court is due to hear a petition from the MDC demanding the electoral commission release the results. Yesterday, lawyers attempting to enter court were blocked by armed police.
The state-run Sunday Mail newspaper said Zanu-PF had written to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) asking it to review the vote-counting process, which had a number of irregularities, according to the article.
"Consequent to the anomalies, the party has also requested that the commission defer the announcement of the presidential election result," it added.
The MDC said the move is illegal, however. MDC secretary-general Tendai Biti said: "The [Electoral] Act says that you ask for a recount within 48 hours of the counting. Counting takes place at polling stations so it's within 48 hours of that."
The MDC also denied a claim made in the newspaper that the party had offered to form a national unity government with Zanu PF.