Lawyers representing MDC Alec Muchadehama and Andrew Makoni of Mbidzo Muchadehama and Makoni told journalists after a three hour court session that the ruling will be made on Tuesday at 1000hrs.

“The matter has been postponed to 1000hrs today because the court has to rule on the urgency of the matter,” said Muchadehama. He said earlier on the court had ruled that he had jurisdiction to hear the matter after Zimbabwe Electoral Commission lawyer George Chikumbirike of Chikumbirike and Associates had argued that the High Court had no jurisdiction to hear the matter.

Chikumbirike then raised another issue that of whether the matter should be treated as urgent.

Said Chikumbirike: “The matter has not yet been determined. Judgment will be delivered today in respect of certain issues.”

Zimbabweans have waited for the announcement of the presidential results eight days after the election and the situation has remained tense with anti-riot police patrolling the streets of Harare. War guerrillas have threatened to defend their pieces of land from white farmers who have been alleged to have returned to farms which were violently grabbed from them.

The MDC resorted to court action to force the release of the presidential results in an election it claims that party leader Morgan Tsvangirai won by 50.3 percent enough to avoid a run-off with ZANU PF’s president Robert Mugabe.

But ZANU PF has said that it is pushing for a re-count of the ballots before they are even announced alleging that some irregularities which may have prejudiced Mugabe have been unearthed in some constituencies. The ruling party has also said it was preparing for a run-off.