Tendai Ruben Mbofana
The curtain has officially fallen on the 90-day public consultation process for Constitutional Amendment (No. 3) Bill, or CAB3.
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As Zimbabweans brace for the upcoming parliamentary debate when the house reconvenes, the discourse remains heavily fixed on the profound legal and constitutional acrobatics at play.
Chief among these concerns is the government’s avoidance of a national referendum, which is required by the Constitution for the sitting president to benefit from any amendment whose effect is to extend the length of time that he may occupy office.
Yet, beyond the critical legal warfare, there is an urgent need to dissect the underlying philosophical logic being used to justify this assault on our supreme law.
The most prominent, deeply patronizing, and frequently recycled justification from proponents of CAB3 is that elections are inherently divisive and, therefore, disruptive to national development.
To put it bluntly, this is the most ridiculous rationale for constitutional mutilation ever advanced in modern political history.
Far from a pragmatic solution to national progress, this argument stands as an embarrassing, self-inflicted indictment of the government of Zimbabwe.
There is absolutely nothing that screams administrative incompetence louder than a ruling elite telling both its citizens and the global community that it is incapable of developing a nation simply because the democratic process causes friction.
Let us be entirely clear: elections, by their very nature across the globe, are adversarial.
They are a contest of ideas, visions, and mandates.
Even if Zimbabwe’s presidential terms were stretched to seven years as CAB3 proposes, those core divisions would not magically evaporate.
Contestation breeds friction; it is a fundamental law of human organization.
It is no different from a high-stakes football match.
When legendary rivals CAPS United and Dynamos FC clashed in Harare just weeks ago, fierce division and partisan passion were entirely expected.
The city’s bragging rights were at stake.
This friction is natural.
However, it would be an absolute absurdity if the Premier Soccer League or ZIFA decided to ban matches between these two giants under the guise of maintaining harmony.
Yet, this is the exact, twisted logic underpinning CAB3.
Delaying or dismantling regular democratic intervals because they cause “divisions” is not statesmanship; it is an admission of failure.
Furthermore, the premise that naturally occurring political friction must stall development is a myth exposed by looking at mature democracies worldwide.
Consider the United States, a nation that operates on an intense political cycle.
Americans do not vote every five years—a timeframe the Zimbabwean government already claims is too disruptive—but every four years for the presidency.
More importantly, they hold mid-term congressional elections directly in the middle of that term.
This means that, in practice, the American electorate is mobilized and voting every two years.
As anyone observing global affairs can attest, American elections breed deep, partisan, and often bitter divisions.
The political temperature is perpetually high, particularly this year with midterm elections only a few months away.
Yet, through the noise, the machinery of national development continues unabated.
Roads are built, technologies are pioneered, and economic policies are executed.
No American administration could ever stand before its populace and claim that infrastructure projects or economic growth had ground to a halt because a midterm election was around the corner.
The same reality applies to the United Kingdom.
The British political landscape is currently defined by sharp, internecine friction, with intense pressure bearing down on Prime Minister Keir Starmer following recent electoral upsets at the hands of Reform UK.
The governing Labour Party is fractured, cabinet tensions are palpable, and the public discourse is deeply polarized.
Despite this volatile political climate, the British civil service functions, public services are maintained, and national policy moves forward.
The friction of democracy is never weaponized as an excuse for administrative paralysis.
How do these nations manage to prosper amidst deep societal polarization?
The answer lies entirely in institutional strength and capable leadership.
Competent governance possesses the maturity to separate the theater of political campaigning from the sacred duty of state administration.
Real leaders are not paralyzed by the sound of dissenting voices, nor do they halt national progress because their mandate is being challenged.
National development should be a continuous, institutionalized machine that runs unhindered by electoral calendars or even a total change of government.
Therefore, any government that genuinely finds elections and political divisions to be an insurmountable roadblock to development is identifying itself as the true problem.
It is an open confession that the individuals in power lack the basic capacity to govern a modern, pluralistic society.
By hiding behind the excuses of CAB3, the current administration has inadvertently exposed its own limitations.
They have looked the Zimbabwean public in the eye and confessed that they cannot lead under the standard rules of democracy.
If a leadership cannot deliver development while respecting the constitutional timelines of the nation, then it has no business occupying the seats of power.
The solution to Zimbabwe’s developmental stagnation is not to mutilate the constitution to accommodate the shortcomings of the ruling elite; it is to demand a leadership capable of operating within a democracy.
The path forward for our nation does not require changing the supreme law to eliminate political competition, but rather changing the government to ensure competent stewardship.
- Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. To directly receive his articles please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08