African Union (AU) election observers taking part in Z imbabwe’s weekend polls said Friday campaigning had so far been peaceful and free of intimidation.
The southern African country goes to the polls Saturday to elect a new president , parliamentary and local government representatives, in what is regarded the most closely fought election.
Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, former president of Sierra Leone, who is heading the AU observer mission, said his team had not witnessed any pre-election violence, unlike in the past, when campaigning in Zimbabwe was characterised by fighting and killings.
“They (observers) are satisfied with the pre-election period as they have not yet seen any indications of political violence,” he said.
The AU has a 21-member team of election observers who have been deployed through out the country.
But Kabbah urged the media to be impartial and give coverage to all contesting political parties.
His comments followed complaints by some opposition parties that they were being denied access to the state-controlled media, particularly radio and television. Panapress.
