I found this article in some BBC archive pages and thought that not much has changed since March 2002, with ZANU PF still cooking the books one way or the other…


People in Zimbabwe are voting in the country’s presidential election. This is what key figures and voters have to say about how the vote is going.


President Mugabe on the vote’s outcome

“I will accept it, I will more than accept it, because I will have won.”


Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai

“ZANU PF is now engaged in a last-ditch effort to stop people from voting it out of power by ensuring that the voting process in MDC strongholds is slowed down.”


Kare Vollan, head of Norway‘s election observers

“There have been queues of thousands of people waiting outside for many hours and with the speed that they started today it is not possible to process all those voters over two days.”


Information Minister Jonathan Moyo

“We should not think that Harare is Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe is Harare. Suggestions that there is a massive turnout in Harare… are really pictures painted by people with creative imaginations.”


Peter Chiriseri, Harare voter

“It is not fair. Voting is not a crime. We are not happy at all. All these people are Zimbabweans and should be allowed to choose their leaders.”


Dennis Musodzi who spent a day and night at a Harare polling station

“I am prepared to spend another day and night here, and I am not making secret what I am here for. I am waiting to vote for Tsvangirai because I am sick and tired of Mugabe.”


Aleck Marange, ZANU PF supporter

“Everything at State House has the signature of our leader scrawled all over it, and no amount of wiping will delete it”


Ian Smith, former prime minister of what was then Rhodesia

“All of the reports we have had indicate that the people say they want to change. So we have a change, then once again this could be one of the greatest countries in the world, instead of being what it is now, which is despised by the rest of the world.”


Edson, who was waiting to vote in Mbare

“If it is safe to stay, I will stay, but if it is not safe to stay, I will go. People are afraid (of being) attacked because there are no lights outside.”