By Cde Patriot Sunungura
Forget the so-called “change champions,” the true winner in the Nkulumane by-election last Saturday was voter apathy.
True Patriots trust me, it wasn’t even close.
Despite the ruling party’s promises to turn Nkulumane into a rural utopia with 18 boreholes, voters had other plans.
They chose to skip the polls and stick to their vending stalls, probably making more money than some politicians do in a year.
Not even a $10 bribe per vote for backing ZANU PF’s Freedom Murechu could drag them to the ballot box.
In the end, Murechu “won” with just 3,416 votes, barely scratching 22% turnout out of 22,833 registered voters.
For context, the late Desire Moyo bagged almost 10,000 votes in 2023 here.
Talk about a political ghost town.
Meanwhile, the opposition used the by-election as a stage for their messy soap opera—divisions louder than a Nyama Choma stall on a Saturday.
Nine candidates, yet none of them could unite on one thing: actually challenging the ruling party.
No surprise, the goal was clear—to join the Parliamentary “looting committee” with their eyes on coupons, loans, and a spot at the feeding trough, rather than, you know, actual law-making or oversight.
When ZEC announced Murechu’s victory on Saturday evening, it was crystal clear that democracy wasn’t just limping, it was chilling at home, sipping Ingwebu, and selling tomatoes in Nkulumane streets.
Voter apathy, ladies and gentlemen, was the undisputed champion.
The opposition of course were too busy fighting for crumbs instead of joining forces to tackle the real challenge.
