The elderly are the latest addition to the growing list of people who are dissatisfied with the constitution writing process that is mired by controversy.
Last week Help Age Zimbabwe director Priscilla Gavi said that , “There is the exclusion of older persons’ issues in processes like the formulation of the national Constitution of Zimbabwe.
“We spoke to them (COPAC) and they said that there was nothing much that is coming out from old persons, we then compiled some propositions but nothing happened.”
The director said it is quiet saddening considering that older persons according to the Central Statistical Office (CSO) (rebranded to Zimbabwe Statistical Agency), people aged 60 and above are 7% of the projected population of 12.4 million in Zimbabwe.
But Majome said that these allegations are strange.
“I would like to know where they get such information. This is a serious allegation and we would like to know if what there are saying is true. This is very strange and it need to be looked at. We have given every person a chance to bring views in the constitution so it is surprising that Help Age is making such allegations,” said Majome.
The constitution making process has been dragging for two years now has seen COPAC being accused by war veterans and war collaborators who are often Zanu PF shock troopers of including rights of minority groups such as gays.
This has led COPAC who are mandated with writing the new supreme document to reinforce its security amid fears that Zanu PF hardliners want the process to fail.
However, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) say that the new document that is being penned by the three parties in the Global Political Agreement (GPA) will lack legitimacy as it is failing to be inclusive.
“There is no inclusivity in the Copac constitution. The constitution-making process has been removed from the public domain and put in the hands of the three representatives of political parties in the inclusive government,” she said.
Post published in: News