Zimbabwe's Constitutional Court has unanimously dismissed a bid by the largest opposition coalition to annul the results of last month's presidential election, which gave a victory to incumbent Emmerson Mnangagwa. Chief Justice Luke Malaba said on Friday that the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) alliance, led by 40-year-old Nelson Chamisa, had failed to prove fraud accusations during the vote.
"The application is dismissed with costs ... Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa is duly declared the winner of the presidential elections held on the 30th of July 2018," Malaba said in his ruling.
Mnangagwa, 75, said he was "not surprised by the court's decision" and called for unity and peace.
"Nelson Chamisa, my door is open and my arms are outstretched, we are one nation, and we must put our nation first. Let us all now put our differences behind us. It is time to move forward together," Mnangagwa wrote on Twitter shortly after the court announced its ruling.
The MDC had filed a legal challenge, citing a catalogue of alleged discrepancies, including incorrect counting and fake polling stations, as well as instances at voting centres where there were more ballots cast than registered voters.
"There has been a massive doctoring of evidence," Thabani Mpofu, a lawyer representing the MDC, told the top court when it started sitting on Wednesday.
Mnangagwa, of the ruling ZANU-PF party, won the election with 50.8 percent of the vote - just enough to pass the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff against Chamisa, who finished second with 44.3 percent.
European Union observers said that the ZANU-PF candidate had benefitted from an "un-level playing field" and some voter intimidation, though international monitors largely praised the conduct of the election.
Source: ALjazeera
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