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Zimbabwe-s
constitution making: Learning nothing and forgetting nothing
Blessing
Vava
February 14, 2013
http://blevava.blogspot.com/2013/02/zimbabwes-constitution-makinglearning.html
Last week I
took time to revisit Article VI of the Global
Political Agreement signed by the three parties in the inclusive
government on 28 September 2008. Section 6, begins by Acknowledging
that it is the fundamental right and duty of the Zimbabwean people
to make a constitution by themselves and for themselves. It goes
on to state that, ''Aware that the process
of making this constitution must be owned and driven by the
people and must be inclusive and democratic; A clear breach of the
agreement by COPAC and its Principals who ended up negotiating on
their own leaving the people in the cold reminiscent of the Kariba
Draft negotiations of 2007. The process was not inclusive; it
left out other political formations and several actors to be part
of the drivers.
What is disturbing is
that we have been hearing loud mouths in the mould of Nyanga North
legislator Douglas Mwonzora and his MDC counterparts that this document
is a product of the people despite its poisonous clauses which are
not only harmful but a serious hazard to the people of Zimbabwe
if consumed through a YES vote in the referendum. Mwonzora's behaviour
is not surprising though, for a person with such ideological inconsistency,
a controversial political identity and above all a long history
of working with sell-outs like the late Bishop Abel Muzorewa, whose
history of selling out is widely documented and fresh in the minds
of Zimbabweans during his infamous Zimbabwe Rhodesia.
What is striking is that
on the 3rd of March 1978, Bishop Muzorewa, Ndabaningi Sithole and
the Rhodesian elites signed an agreement at the Governor's Lodge
in the then Salisbury to pave way for a stalled unity to make up
an Executive Council. That 'government- did not last
and they even approved a constitution after a referendum mainly
participated by whites in January 1979. The Internal Settlement
did not last as it collapsed because it was an elite and sell-out
agreement by Muzorewa and crew and left out the nationalist movements.
The internal settlement was also condemned by the United Nations
Security Council Resolution 423 of 1978, declaring unlawful any
"internal settlement" in Southern Rhodesia. 34 years after,
Zimbabwe is at a defining moment, the ruling elites are in bed caressing
each other while the people of Zimbabwe are peeping through dark
windows, however with small openings for a twinkle to get a glimpse
of decision making in national processes. The ruling elites are
in a compromised position, like Muzorewa and Sithole they are in
an Internal Settlement, an arrangement between themselves through
their scandalous draft.
However the
referendum will be the defining moment for the people of Zimbabwe
to reject the elite pact between ZANU PF and the two MDCs. Voting
for this draft
will be dangerous and suicidal because it benefits the politicians
the most a feature that is ultra vires modern and acceptable constitution
making trends. Politicians of the day have failed to learn from
the past that constitutions are living documents that transcend
and outlive current leadership short sighted interests. The MDC-T
has been known to be at the forefront questioning the rationale
of a big cabinet. Their 2000 election manifesto proposed about 15
ministers ironically they now see no fault in the COPAC draft probably
it-s the belief that they will be forming the next government
and enjoy the same powers, as they have tested how sweet it is after
their short but disastrous stint in government. The COPAC draft
is a worse off document than the current constitution or the rejected
2000 draft. There are some who are saying it-s a step ahead,
it-s a transitional document etc. They even accept that it
is not a perfect document but the country needs to move forward.
The questions I pose, step ahead to where? Moving forward to where?
Clearly we are not moving forward with the COPAC draft rather it
is tantamount to moving backwards to the times of Rhodesia when
the white settlers crafted laws that favour themselves and segregating
the black majority.
This draft creates
a powerful executive and a bloated legislature and this will create
serious problems because all these people will be demanding cars,
houses and hefty allowances like we are witnessing now with the
exception that the treasury will have to foot the bill for a larger
cabinet and parliament something that is not in sync with our economic
state. If recent statements by MPs and ministers are anything to
go by then Zimbabweans should wake up and resist a new constitution
that will allow for a bloated and unnecessarily huge parliament
because it will run the government coffers dry. This is probably
why both the House of Assembly and Senate rushed to endorse the
draft without even debating its contents as required by Section
6.1(b) (vi) of the GPA. If the parties are really genuine in Zimbabwe
having, not just a constitution, but a good one that will serve
generations to come, they should have adequately debated the national
report, the draft constitution-s contents against a backdrop
of clauses negotiated and imposed by the Executive and of course
taking into account valuable points raised by progressive movements
like the NCA.
The mere fact that the 190 plus legislators and the upper house
see no fault in the draft alone shows the insincerity of politicians
who are out to force people to endorse their interests. This renders
Mwonzora and his ZANU PF colleagues- claims that the draft
contains the views of the people as laughable and an indictment
on this selfish leadership. The manufactures of that draft should
come out clear to the people of Zimbabwe and apologise, they wasted
4 years and US$50 million to produce a shoddy document not even
worth half the time and the resources wasted. To think that the
draft is worth US$50million is a serious scandal.
If the views of the people
are really captured in the draft one wonders why the parties are
making desperate efforts to convince Zimbabweans to vote for their
document. They need to give us strong reasons why such a draft should
be voted for, which so far they have failed beyond sloganeering,
lying and misrepresenting what is contained in that draft. What
is positive is that many Zimbabweans out there are now aware that
the role of the 'invisible- rather visible political
hands of the principals in this whole scam, and are now geared for
the referendum which might be held on 16th March. After all has
been said and done, the politicians still owe the people an explanation
on how they used US$50million which could have been channeled towards
resuscitating ailing sectors of the economy and social service delivery.
It smears of logic why they sought to waste valuable huge sums of
money when they knew they would eventually negotiate the Kariba
Draft style, obviously they were hatching the great national deception
meant to hoodwink people into believing they own the draft. The
nation should simply reject this draft the way they resisted the
2000 draft and the Kariba draft and the government concentrate on
elections and thereafter pave way for national healing to depoliticise
and depolarise the nation leading to an inclusive independent people
driven constitution-making exercise.
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