They also claim Chivayo promised to buy a brand new vehicle for each voting councillor if Magwizi won.

The candidates also allege that government minister Tino Machakaire influenced the vote by publicly endorsing Magwizi.

Phiri, the former Premier Soccer League chairman, and Machana, a former ZIFA board member, want the election results nullified and a new election organized.

They are seeking a declaration that third-party influence rendered the election illegitimate.

Machana and Phiri are also calling for a fresh election, with the councillors who voted in the previous election to be barred from voting, as they believe their votes are tainted.

They further request that Magwizi be prohibited from standing as a candidate in the new election.

One of their key arguments is that a councillor was caught attempting to take a picture of their completed ballot to prove to their paymasters that they had followed instructions. They said:

No wonder why one voting delegate was caught taking a photo of his cast ballot while in the voting booth. This was meant to show his handlers how he had voted.

The probabilities are that he and his fellow voting delegates were under pressure to show third parties how they had voted.

That means they did not exercise their right to vote freely. In other words, they did not vote according to their conscience.