Zimbabwe opposition fears vote-rigging

Zimbabwe's main opposition party accused the government on Sunday of printing more than 3 million excess paper ballots for the coming presidential election and accused longtime leader Robert Mugabe of attempting to rig the voting.

Tendai Biti, secretary general of the Movement for Democratic Change, said leaked documents from government printers showed 9 million ballot papers were ordered for the 5.9 million people registered to vote in the presidential election on March 29. Legislative elections are taking place the same day.

Correspondence supplied from Fidelity Printers, producers of the nation's bank notes, also showed 600,000 postal ballot papers were requisitioned for a few thousand soldiers, police and civil servants away from their home districts and for diplomats and their families abroad, he said.

"We are extremely worried about the extra ballot papers," Biti said.

The head of the Electoral Commission, Judge George Chiweshe, refused to comment to The Associated Press on the specific allegations but told reporters that his duty is to ensure free and fair elections.

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai said he expected Mugabe, the president, to "engage in every trick in the book" to rig the voting.

At a campaign rally in western Harare, a crowd of at least 30,000 people converged on an open field to hear Tsvangirai. It was the largest crowd so far for a rally ahead of the vote — and contrasted with the 3,000 who turned out for Mugabe in the country's second largest city, Bulawayo.

Mugabe vowed at his rally that he would stay in power.

"Tsvangirai will never, never rule this country," the 84-year-old ruler told the crowd, many of whom were bused in from rural areas. "Those who want to vote for him can do so but those votes will be wasted votes."

Mugabe also said Zimbabwe would implement a new law requiring all foreign and white-owned companies to give 51 percent ownership to blacks.

"We want to see Zimbabwean people in control," he said. "Our people must run the businesses. They should not just listen to white bosses."

In a carnival atmosphere that contrasted with Mugabe's austere meetings, Tsvangirai, 55, said Mugabe was "really mad" over recent opposition gains ahead of the March 29 election.

His supporters waved red cards, an opposition symbol denoting a soccer referee sending Mugabe off the field. One musical group received thunderous applause for its song "Saddam has gone, Bob is next."

A few uniformed police ringed the field. Many supporters, singing and wearing Tsvangirai T-shirts, arrived on antiquated trucks and vans belching exhaust smoke.

In past elections, Mugabe opponents have routinely been prevented from openly wearing T-shirts and distributing posters, fliers and other campaign materials.

Both Tsvangirai and the other presidential candidate, former Finance Minister Simba Makoni, say they are riding high on anger against record inflation topping 100,000 percent and widespread shortages of all basic supplies.

The opposition also protested last-minute changes to voting procedures allowing police a supervisory role inside polling stations, saying it will intimidate voters.

Western observers are barred, with only delegates from "friendly" countries invited.