Opposition MDC-T leader Douglas Mwonzora has defended the appointment of Zanu PF second secretary Kembo Mohadi’s daughter Abigail Ambrose to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission panel of Commissioners.
Ambrose is one of five ZEC commissioners who took oath of office before President Emmerson Mnangagwa at State House after going through interviews at Parliament.
Responding to journalist Hopewell Chin’ono’s tweet in which he said it was an act of political stupidity to appoint Ambrose and accused Mwonzora of being part of the interviewing panel.
“Hopewell Chin’ono @daddyhope seeks to blame the MDC for the appointment of Mrs Abigail Ambrose-Mohadi by @edmnangagwa as Commissioner in in ZEC. This is just the usual and cheap propaganda. The record has to be set straight.
“Ever since the promulgation of 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 @nelsonchamisa, Prosper Mutseyami and Innocent Gonese in the interviewing panel. Why then does @daddyhope not blame them for Chigumba’s appointment?,” posted Mwonzora
He said Ambrose was nominated on the basis of her qualification and that the MDC could not exceptionally decide the result.
“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 individuals panelists 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,” he said
He added “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 @nelsonchamisa, Innocent Gonese and Prosper Mutseyami set in the Chigumba interview. @daddyhope.”
