Zimbabwe presents herself as a democracy, characterised by regular election of public representatives from the local to the national level, popularly under the harmonized elections system. Democracy then is often associated with the rule of the people, directly and indirectly, whose ultimate aim is to achieve the desires of the people. Moreover, a democratic governance system is one that promotes, protects and upholds fundamental human rights and democracy; the sovereignty and interests of the people; constitutionalism and the rule of law; as well as a system of transparency and public accountability.
As we join the rest of the world in commemorating this day, it is important to reiterate what the Zimbabwe Constitution provides for in order for the people of Zimbabwe to reflect how well or poorly we are as a democracy. The Zimbabwean Constitution is elaborate on the declaration of rights, sets our very clear aspirations as captured in the preamble, the founding provisions and national objectives. The State and its citizens are mandated to promote, uphold and protect these rights and tenets with the State through its subsequent arms including the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary given elaborate roles and responsibilities. To further entrench democracy and its practices, the Zimbabwean Constitution enabled the creation of Independent Commissions Supporting Democracy namely the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission, the Zimbabwe Media Commission and the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission.
Recently held harmonized elections, the continued repression of alternative voices and structures, heightened conscription and restriction on the civil space and non state actors, the undermining of key constitutional imperatives, politicization of government initiatives and policies have all but weakened the public’s conviction that our democracy is stable and entrenched. It is sad to observe that public confidence in the Independent Commissions is gradually on the decline, a situation that will further empower the State and its agencies to continue on a path of limited accountability and relevance towards the public good.
This year’s Democracy Day focuses on Artificial Intelligence as a tool for good governance. With growing information, communication and technological advances, Artificial Intelligence has become a new phenomenon impacting all communication and relationships within a democracy. Good and promising as this is, if left unchecked, Artificial Intelligence can work against humanity and democracy in particular. Therefore, we urge the Government and State Commissions as well as non state actors to invest in harnessing the positives that Artificial Intelligence creates especially in gaining insights on public mood/will, simplifying messaging and encouraging public participation in governance processes, while adhering to strict regulation protocols to attend to the negatives such as mis-information and disinformation and the violation of privacy rights.
AI can also be used as a tool for good governance, AI can be used to counter misinformation, disinformation and mal-information around the election cycle. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) and CSOs can also use AI to enhance public participation via civic education. This can help to decrease voter apathy especially among the youth. AI chatbots can also be used to engage voters on social media to answer electoral questions and provide critical electoral information. To add on, AI can also be used to detect electoral fraud by analysing patterns and anomalies in data. AI must serve mankind transparently!
The Election Resource Centre (ERC) Africa joins the rest of the world in commemorating the International Day of Democracy which is celebrated annually on the 15th of September. On this International Day of Democracy, let’s keep working to build a more democratic, peaceful and prosperous Zimbabwe for all!
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