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Ceremonial
opening of new Parliament: Tuesday 17th September - Bill Watch 46/2013
Veritas
September 16, 2013
Ceremonial
opening of Parliament – Tuesday 17th September
President Mugabe
will open the Eighth Parliament of Zimbabwe on Tuesday 17th September
2013, amid the pomp and ceremony traditionally associated with the
event including a police mounted escort for the Presidential limousine,
a military parade, inspection of the Guard of Honour, singing of
the National Anthem and an air force flypast. Proceedings in the
chamber of the National Assembly will follow, commencing at 12 noon,
when the President will address assembled members of both Houses
of Parliament in the presence of invited guests.
The
President’s speech
Parliament’s
Standing Orders describe the President’s speech on such occasions
as “the speech made by the Head of State declaring the causes
of his or her calling the Parliament
to meet”. The speech is expected to follow the usual form
of a State of the Nation address and an outline of the Government’s
intentions for the year ahead, particularly its legislative programme
for Parliament. The legislative programme should be very full, given
the need to amend existing Acts of Parliament to bring them into
line with the new Constitution. Some of these amendments or new
legislation should have been in place on the 22nd May when parts
of the Constitution
came into force and some should have been in force on the 22nd August
when the rest of the Constitution came into force. [See Constitution
Watches 33,
34
and 35
of 20th, 23rd and 28th August for examples of legislation needed].
At the conclusion
of his speech the President will declare the first session of this
Eighth Parliament open and then leave the chamber of the National
Assembly in procession.
Proceedings
after the speech - Members of both Houses will reassemble very briefly,
in accordance with Standing Orders, for formal notice to be given
of the customary motions of thanks and loyalty in reply to the President’s
speech. Once that has been done, no other motions or business will
be allowed, and the Speaker and the President of the Senate will
then adjourn proceedings in their respective Houses to a date fixed
by a Government Minister.
Note: Parliament
will have to follow the old Standing Orders for the time being but
new ones necessitated by the new Constitution will have to be drawn
up [see Bill Watch 44/2013
of 6th September].
MDC-T
to Boycott
MDC-T Chief
Whip Innocent Gonese has confirmed that MDC-T MPs will not attend
tomorrow’s ceremony. They will, however, play their full part
in Parliament thereafter.
Vacant
Senate seat
In GN 484/2013
the Chief Elections Officer of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission
gives official public notice of the vacancy in the Senate caused
by the death of Senator Kumbirai Kangai on 24th August. Bill Watch
44/2013 of 6th September explained the procedure for filling the
vacancy that must now be followed and also mentioned the other Senate
party-list vacancy, caused by the election of Senator Ednah Madzongwe
as President of the Senate.
Government
Gazette of 13th September
Statutory
Instruments
Law revision
- See the following item on a forthcoming revised version of the
Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act.
Money laundering
- In SI 136/2013 the Law Reviser gives notice that his revised version
of the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act will be available
for sale by the Government Printer with effect from 4th October.
From that date it will be the sole version of the Act for all purposes,
replacing the error-riddled version of the Act that was gazetted
in late June.
Local authority
by-laws - There are three sets of new by-laws made by the Lupane
Local Board: Animals [SI 133/2013]; People’s Market [134/2013];
Refuse Removal [135/2013].
Outstanding
Acts of the last Parliament
Two Acts passed
by the last Parliament in June still await gazetting as Acts:
- Income Tax
Act
- Electricity
Amendment Act.
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