Zanu PF affiliate body queries delimitation report

Chidawa presses Zanu PF youth league executive on failing to defend President Mnangagwa | News of the South — Tonderai Chidawa

Philemon Jambaya

A fraternity of the Zanu PF party has queried the contents of the recently tabled delimitation report, with a former leader of a student’s representative body writing to Speaker Jacob Mudenda to express dissatisfaction over it.

Tonderai Chidawa, a former president of the Zimbabwe Congress of Students Union (ZICOSU) - which is an affiliate of Zanu PF - as well as the Zimbabwe Youth Action Platform told the Speaker in a communication to him through his legal representation, Madhuku Lawyers and Legal Practitioners.

“It appears that the preliminary report tabled in Parliament is not an act of Zec as a body corporate, at most it may be an act of the chairperson of the commission, Priscilla Chigumba, and her deputy, Rodney Simuka Kiwa.

“There would be no preliminary delimitation report within the contemplation of section 161 (7) of the constitution.

“We are in possession of a document signed by the seven commissioners of Zec. The contents of that document speak to themselves that the seven commissioners are not part of the preliminary delimitation report that is now before the Parliament.

“The document from the seven commissioners to the extent to which it inescapably shows the preliminary delimitation report must be investigated by Parliament before it proceeds with the process envisaged under section 161(8) of the constitution,” he argued.

Following its presentation by Zec chairperson Priscilla Chigumba to President Emmerson Mnangagwa late last year, the delimitation report was tabled in the National Assembly, with a 13-member ad hoc committee formed to peruse it. The committee comprises members of parliament for Zanu PF, CCC and MDC.

“The Constitution of Zimbabwe section 161 Sub Section (1) states that once every 10 years, on a date or within a period fixed by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to form as soon as possible after a population census, ZEC must conduct a delimitation of the electoral boundaries into which Zimbabweans provide.

“Whereas the ZEC commenced the delimitation process in June and submitted its preliminary report to His Excellency, President E. D. Mnangagwa on the 26th of December 2022. And whereas Section 161 Sub Section (7) (6) states that the President must cause the delimitation report to be laid before Parliament within seven days for Parliament’s consideration and referral for any issues to the President for ZEC’s consideration.

“I therefore, the Minister of Justice and Legal Parliamentary Affairs, do hereby lay the ZEC Preliminary Report before the National Assembly for consideration,” Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said of the developments.