Paul Mangwana: People gave Zanu PF the right to amend the Constitution if it so desires

0
86
Paul Mangwana: People gave Zanu PF the right to amend the Constitution if it so desires
Paul Mangwana: People gave Zanu PF the right to amend the Constitution if it so desires

By Karen Nyeraurombo

Paul Mangwana has said there is nothing spectacular about Zanu PF amending the constitution, adding that the people of Zimbabwe gave it the right to do so with a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

Zanu PF holds more than the required two-thirds majority in the National Assembly to pass any law it desires. The ruling party also enjoys a controlling stake in the Senate.

Mangwana’s sentiments comes at a time when some people have raised concerned at the manner that Zanu PF is amending the constitution.

Zimbabwe adopted the constitution in 2013 following massive consultations that took place under COPAC where Mangwana was Co-Chair with Douglas Mwonzora and Edward Mkhosi.

The constitution was voted for by over three million people following support from Zanu PF, MDC-T and MDC-N.

However, about eight years down the line, the Zanu PF led government has already lined two amendments to the document.

Speaking during an interview on Tuesday-Talk, just a week after the Senate passed Amendment Bill No.1, Paul Mangwana said the two-thirds that Zanu PF got in 2018 gives it the mandate to amend the constitution if it so desires.

“It’s still a people’s constitution, you do not necessarily have to run a country through a referendum every time that is why we have various ways of changing.

“We agreed during the constitution making process that if at any stage it becomes necessary to amend the constitution the following processes would take place.

“So when you’re simply doing an amendment to a provision of the constitution you now need two-thirds majority in the Parliament to do so. So that is the process which is provided by the constitution. The constitution is a living document, it also allows amendments to itself and in this case through an amendment.

“The people’s constitution like this particular one was a people driven constitution to the extent that we consulted the public to say what are your views?

“Constitution making is not a one size fits all process, one of the processes is to consult the people, negotiate and get legal experts to assist on technical matters.

“We are still having a people driven constitution, but the people are involved differently even when we are making legislative processes through Parliament. Parliament still has to consult the electorate; they hold public interviews and also go out to engage the public promoting any intended amendments to the constitution.

“So that process will still be people driven to the extent that representatives of the people through Parliament are involved and they also engage through public consultation process.

“The independence of the judiciary is expressed on how judges arrive at their decisions, are they being told what to do, how to judge a matter? Our system knows a judge has independence to the extent that they make decisions without political interference.

“But how they get appointed there must be a way of appointing judges, if you look at USA and the United Kingdom you cannot completely remove the involvement of leadership in appointing judges,” he said.

Is the Bill not properly before Parliament?

There is however concern on the legality of the Bill, with some indicating that it not properly before the Parliament.

According to Section 147 of the Constitution, when Parliament dissolves, all processes that were before it also lapses.

Paul Mangwana: People gave Zanu PF the right to amend the Constitution if it so desires

Constitution Amendment Bill No.1 was under the 8th Parliament of Zimbabwe which dissolved ahead of the 2018 elections.

According to Veritas Zimbabwe, the government was supposed to have restarted the process from scratch.

Former Harare East legislator Tendai Biti has warned that they might challenge the legality of the law in Court.

If Biti does challenge the law, it will be the second time for the Bill to be challenged in court.

The last time it was challenged Mutare Central legislator Innocent Gonese and then Harare West legislator Jessie Majome.

Majome and Gonese were not happy with the way it had been passed especially on the numbers part in the Senate. According to legal watchers, the law will give President Emmerson Mnangagwa powers to appoint the top judges on his own without them going through the public interviews.

Paul Mangwana: People gave Zanu PF the right to amend the Constitution if it so desires