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Hamad calls for meeting with other political parties
2005-11-02 08:03:14
By Mwinyi Sadallah, and Bilal Abdul-Aziz Zanzibar
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CUF Isles presidential candidate Seif Sharif Hamad waves to supporters in front of his headquarters after the elections results were announced in Zanzibar's Stone Town yesterday. |
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CUF presidential loser, Seif Hamad has called for an emergency meeting of secretaries-general to discuss the irregularities identified in the Isles general election to pre-empt looming political chaos.
Hamad, who lost the election to the incumbent, President Amani Abeid Karume, made the call yesterday in Zanzibar at a press conference shortly after the Zanzibar Electoral Commission announced the results.
He said: ’’The meeting is important because it will discuss the shortcomings in the polls and will try to find a solution for the sake of national interest.’’
He said CCM secretary-general, Phillip Mangula had agreed to the proposal, but said he needed time to consult his chairman, President Benjamin Mkapa.
The opposition leader has disputed the poll results announced by the Zanzibar Electoral Commission (ZEC), citing irregularities.
Hamad said results showed that CCM had won the election by a small margin.
He accused the government and ZEC of manipulating results.
’’I won the presidency,’’ he said, but declined to substantiate his statement.
About the shortfalls, he said that some 80,000 CUF supporters and members were barred from voting for unknown reasons.
This was one of the tricks used by the authorities to manipulate the results, he said.
He claimed that CUF had won 10 constituencies in Unguja, but the Isles government officials in collaboration with police altered the results and gave CUF one constituency only, Mji Mkongwe.
CUF chairman, Prof Ibrahim Lipumba has pledged to lead peaceful demonstrations to protest the results if there was no consensus between the two parties.
He blamed security forces in Zanzibar for conducting door-to-door operations, beating up innocent CUF supporters and members.
’’I wonder what election observers mean by free and fair elections,’’ he said.
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