A Zanu PF parliamentarian has confirmed that efforts are being made by the ruling party and a faction of the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) to amend the Zimbabwe Constitution in order to extend the term of office of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, legislators and councilors by at least five years.
In a statement, Zanu PF’s Bikita West Member of Parliament Energy Mutodi said a proposed motion on presidential, parliamentary and local government term limits was “untimely leaked to the media.”
Mutodi said the proposed draft motion circulating on social media is authentic and work in progress, which will become official when signed by the Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda and its proponents.
Mutodi, who allegedly authored the draft motion with CCC’s Charles Moyo, said “due process will be followed in accordance with the Standing Rules and Orders and the Constitution of Zimbabwe leading to a properly approved motion.”
But Moyo distanced himself from the leaked document saying, “I have nothing to do with that and the only person to speak about this issue is our senate leader Hon. Nonhlanhla Mlotshwa.”
The latter said her party has nothing to do with the draft motion “and make no mistake, we will oppose it as much as we can because I support constitutionalism and not somebody who wants to change the constitution to suit himself.”
However, backers of the draft motion said to be at least 22 CCC parliamentarians and a large number of Zanu PF legislators, are confident that they will table it when parliament opens in February.
Mutodi and his colleagues have already informed Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi about their intentions. The minister was not available for comment as he was unreachable on his mobile phone.
There is a lot of resistance in the ruling party about any constitutional amendments relating to presidential terms. A senior Zanu PF official, who requested not to be identified in fear of being victimized, said, “I think I can honestly say it’s madness! There’s no reason to extend ED’s term and it’s insanity for the opposition to openly advocate for the ruling party to continue ruling. I know that as a party, we are really good at intelligence and corrupting the opposition, but this is brazenly ridiculous.”
Constitutional expert Lovemore Madhuku, who is also leader of the opposition National Constitutional Assembly party, told Studio 7 that Zimbabweans should take to the streets to block any constitutional amendments that would lead to the extension of the term of office of the president.
Madhuku said, “This is a year where we ought to face directly and bluntly this whole nonsense about 2030 and it must be buried whether alive or dead and once we bury it we are able to move forward with the politics of the country. This thing must be removed from our political processes.”
Mutodi and his colleagues are planning to move a motion for the introduction of a constitutional amendment bill that seeks to amend Section 95(b) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe to “allow the term of the president to be extended by any period not exceeding 5 years as shall be determined by parliament.”
The proposed bill, according to the draft motion, will seek to also amend Section 91(2) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe to allow parliament to determine an additional period of time the president may continue to hold office at the expiry of his or her second term.
They want parliament to amend Section 143(1) and 158(1)(a) to extend the term of office for parliamentarians “by such period parliament may determine for the sake of economic development, peace building and the restructuring of government including addition or abolition of government posts.”
The proponents of the motion are also suggesting the amendment of Section 328(7) which bars a sitting president from seeking a third term, arguing that the current supreme law does not conform to the needs of Zimbabweans as there is need to hold a referendum before any constitutional amendments.
According to the lawmakers, some of the constitutional provisions “do not meet the current aspirations of the people of Zimbabwe who would like to see the current national development trajectory continue” under Mnangagwa.
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They claim that there is a lot of toxic politics in Zimbabwe, which calls for a “comprehensive electoral reform process, dialogue and consensus” by all citizens.
The proponents of the draft motion also claim that Mnangagwa deserves an extension of his term beyond 2028 when his two terms expire as he has worked hard for Zimbabwe’s social and economic development.
Some members of a faction of the CCC led by Welshman Ncube, including the self-imposed party secretary general Sengezo Tshabangu, are allegedly backing proposals for amending the constitution in order to extend the term of office of the president.
Tshabangu was recently suspended by CCC for allegedly attempting to make some parliamentary leadership changes without following proper party procedures. He has dismissed his suspension as “nonsensical.”
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Source link : https://allafrica.com/stories/202501160313.html
Author : publicaffairs@voa.gov (VOA)
Publish date : 2025-01-16 12:46:45
