JUSTICE, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs minister Ziyambi Ziyambi’s strategy to rush the controversial Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 3) Bill through Parliament was exposed as proposed amendments were riddled with mistakes.
The Bill was passed by the Senate on Thursday after receiving the required two-thirds majority, with 75 senators voting in favour and four against.
During the committee stage the Upper House adopted several amendments before returning the Bill to the National Assembly for concurrence.
Parliament watchdog Veritas says most of the amendments were introduced by the Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs minister to correct errors and omissions that had remained in the Bill after it was passed by the National Assembly.
“Most of the Senate’s amendments were proposed by the minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs in order to correct errors and omissions in the Bill as previously amended by the National Assembly,” Veritas said.
“All this highlights the lack of care with which the original Bill was put together and the dangers of making hasty, ill-considered amendments to such an important Bill.”
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Among the changes made by the Senate was an amendment to Section 243 of the Constitution to revise the functions of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, particularly its role in recommending measures to Parliament and the Executive to promote human rights, national healing, reconciliation, and nation-building.
The Senate also amended Section 285 by extending the tenure of members of the National Council and provincial assemblies of chiefs from five years to seven years.
Another amendment substituted Section 145 of the Constitution to provide that the first sitting of Parliament after a general election must be convened by the Clerk of Parliament through a notice in the Government Gazette within 14 days of the declaration of election results.
It also provides that until the election of the Speaker of the National Assembly or the President of the Senate, the Clerk of Parliament will preside over the first sitting of each House.
As the Senate amended the Bill, it must now be returned to the National Assembly for approval of the changes before it can be transmitted to President Emmerson Mnangagwa for assent.
Although the National Assembly had adjourned until July 7, Parliament is now expected to reconvene earlier next week to consider the Senate amendments.
However, some lawyers, opposition politicians, and civil society organisations who are against the Bill argue that it must be subjected to a referendum.
Constitutional lawyer Musa Kika said after the Bill passes in the National Assembly, in terms of Part 2 of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution, the Bill must be presented to a referendum within three months of passage.
“The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission must run the referendum. This is because the Bill is seeking to amend Section 328(7) of the Constitution, which can only be amended via a referendum,” Kika said.
“If the referendum votes ‘no’, that is the end of the process. But if the ‘yes’ vote wins, the Bill must go to the President for signature. Parliament must give public notice of the date when the Bill is sent to the President for his signature.
“The President has 21 days to sign the Bill and gazette it once he receives it.
“If the President thinks the Bill is unconstitutional and does not want to sign it, he must within those 21 days send it back to Parliament, indicating his reasons and asking for the Bill to be reconsidered.
“At that point, the National Assembly must reconsider the Bill, or pass the Bill with or without amendments and send it back to the President after a two-thirds affirmative vote.”
He added: “If at that point the President still does not want to sign the Bill due to constitutionality reservations, he must refer the Bill to the Constitutional Court for advice on constitutionality.
“The President will only sign when the Constitutional Court says the Bill is constitutional. The Bill will then be gazetted.”