HARARE - Law experts said Zimbabwe should hold by-elections in seven House of Assembly and Senate constituencies by mid-May to accommodate Gibson Sibanda, deputy leader of a breakaway Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) faction who was appointed Minister of State in February but is yet to secure Sibanda, who is Minister of State in Deputy Prime Minister Arthur
Mutambara's Office responsible for National Healing, has just over a
month left before the end of the three months constitutional deadline
for him to secure a parliamentary seat or risk losing his ministerial
position.
He was defeated in last year's House of Assembly polls and could not secure one of the three non-constituency seats reserved for his party under a power-sharing deal signed last September with President Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai of the larger MDC faction.
Under the Zimbabwean Constitution, he cannot hold office for more than three months without a seat as either a Member of Parliament (MP) or senator.
His three months will be up on May 19, which means he has to become a senator or MP before then.
MDC-M has no vacant appointed seats available, so it looks as if Mr Sibanda will have to take his chances in a by-election, observed Veritas, a group of lawyers.
Sibanda's MDC wing was allocated a total of three non-constituency seats following an amendment to the Constitution in February – one seat in the House of Assembly and three in the Senate.
The House of Assembly seat was allocated to Mutambara following his appointment as Deputy Prime Minister while the senatorial seats were given to party secretary general Welshman Ncube and Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga.
This left the smaller MDC faction one seat short of its requirements and time is running out.
Ncube, who is Minister of Industry and Commerce and Misihairabwi-Mushonga were sworn-in as senators two weeks ago.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga is Minister of Regional Integration and International Co-operation under Zimbabwe's coalition government.
There are three constituency seats to be filled in the House of Assembly and another three senatorial constituencies requiring by-elections.
The four House of Assembly vacant seats are for Matobo South, Gokwe-Gumunyu, Guruve North and Bindura constituencies.
Matobo fell vacant after MDC member Lovemore Moyo was elected Speaker of the House of Assembly while Gokwe-Gumunyu, Guruve North and Bindura seats became vacant following last year's deaths of Zanu (PF)'s Ephraim Mushoriwa, Cletus Mabharanga and Elliot Manyika, respectively.
The by-elections for Gokwe-Gumunyu, Guruve North and Bindura could, however, pose legal challenges for the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission because of the constitutional timeframe for holding such polls.
Under Zimbabwe's electoral laws, a by-election is to be called within three months of a sitting MP's death.
There is also the pending case of the MDC MP for Chimanimani West, Lynette Karenyi, who was convicted in January of forging signatures on her nomination papers for last year's parliamentary elections.
Parliament is still to decide on the fate of the legislator who could lose her seat if parliamentarians uphold the court ruling.
Senatorial by-elections are due in Chegutu, Chiredzi and Gokwe South constituencies following the reassignment of the incumbents to other positions.
The Chegutu senatorial seat was vacated by Zanu (PF) member Edna Madzongwe after her election as president of the Senate.
The Chiredzi seat fell vacant after Titus Maluleke of Zanu (PF) was appointed provincial governor of Masvingo while and the Gokwe South seat was vacated by Jaison Machaya when he was named Midlands provincial governor.
BY NEVER CHANDA
Post published in: News