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| International |
| Zim voting extended... |
| 2002-03-11 |
Unless you vote for Bob. And maybe if you don't. A judge ordered voting be extended into a third day in Zimbabwe's presidential election, but six hours after the school-turned-polling station was to open, the gates were still locked. Opposition officials accused Mugabe's government of delaying the opening of polls to disenfranchise voters in urban areas like Harare, an opposition stronghold. The large voter turnout was taken as a sign of support for Tsvangirai. They were busy reprinting the ballots in Urdu. But don't worry. They very helpfully checked the boxes for them. Morgan's gonna need a big turnout to counteract all those ballot boxes that were filled ahead of time. The crowd seethed with anger and settled down only after the polling station's election officer Charles Mabeka received orders to reopen the station at noon. "I was told not to start until we got the order. We have been ready since 7 a.m.," he said. "So why don't all you nice people go home, and I'll call you when we're ready, okay?" Peter Gede, a businessman, scoffed at the explanation, calling the reason for the delay obvious. "(The government is) trying to rig it. They are trying to stop us from voting ... they are desperate and frightened," said Gede. Bob's probably got the plane warming up with the national treasury and the wifelet already on board. All those other poor sods are looking at somebody else's cousins getting their jobs. Under the baking noon sun, women found shelter under umbrellas. The line thickened under the shade of a curbside tree. But police soon ushered voters back into single file lines. "I am fed up. If I hadn't made up my mind, I wouldn't support Mugabe after this," said Michael Chivi, an unemployed father of two who spent the night outside the school. Is it just me, or does it sound like this goober is going to support Bob whether the cops beat him up and make him stand in the sun or not? Chivi said that when news trickled through Sunday night that voting had been extended, police came brandishing riot sticks and drove voters out of the school yard and locked the gates despite promises voting would continue into the night. They threatened to "spread tear gas if we didn't go home," he said. Wait and see the nice things they do if Bob somehow loses. And if he doesn't, it'll be even worse. Somehow I can't see them saying, "Okay, Morgan. You won fair and square. What do you want us to do now?" |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |