CAB3 Submissions Top Half a Million

By Kudzaishe Chimonera

Parliament received more than 530 000 submissions on the proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 (CAB 3) with a parliamentary committee expected to table its findings before Parliament next week.

The chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Eddison Zvobgo said the committee was in the final stages of analysing views gathered during nationwide public consultations.

“We are almost complete. We have had over half a million, about 530 000 submissions so far and now we are simply mopping up and consolidating and breaking it down into the various sectors of the population,” he said.

The consultations, which have generated significant public interest and political debate were conducted to gather citizens’ views on the proposed constitutional changes before Parliament considers the Bill.

Zvobgo said the committee’s report would be presented during the Bill’s Second Reading in Parliament which is expected to take place next week.

“The Committee of Justice will present its report to Parliament,” he said.

According to Zvobgo, the report is intended to ensure that legislators are fully informed of public opinion before deliberating on the proposed amendments.

“We want members of Parliament to be fully armed with the views of the Zimbabwean people before they enter the debate,” he said.

He added that the report would provide a detailed breakdown of submissions from different sectors of society including young people, women and other demographic groups.

“Again, we want people, the MPs, to know what do the various sectors think, what do the youth think about a particular issue, what do the women think about a particular issue,” he said.

The committee’s findings are expected to play a key role in shaping parliamentary debate on CAB 3 which has attracted both support and criticism from political parties, civil society organisations and constitutional experts.

The proposed amendments have become one of the most closely watched legislative issues in the country with stakeholders divided over their potential impact on governance and constitutional democracy.