Zimbabwe’s bill to cancel presidential elections has sparked controversy Political Affairs

Harare, Zimbabwe Zimbabwe’s lawmakers have approved a bill to replace direct elections with a parliamentary vote, a move that lawmakers say will improve governance but critics fear could weaken democracy and increase the power of the ruling party.

“I can’t believe that these are the people who want to elect the president on behalf of everyone,” Barnabas Gura, 38, from Glen View in Harare, told Al Jazeera.

“Only 210 MPs vote on behalf of 15 million people.

On Thursday, Constitutional Amendment Bill No 3 was approved by Parliament after 216 MPs voted for it and 42 voted against it. The bill now goes to the Senate, where it is also expected to get the two-thirds majority needed to amend the law.

This law aims to change the constitution of Zimbabwe in 2013 by changing the direct election of the president to the election of the Senate and the National Assembly.

The Minister of Justice, Ziyambi Ziyambi, who is sponsoring the bill, has refused to criticize the amendment as disrupting Zimbabwe’s constitutional system.

In a speech to parliament on 3 June, Ziyambi said the law “does not throw away our legal system in any way, shape or form but to continue”.

“It is useful and experienced in the evaluation of the institutions and the honesty that after more than ten years in the implementation of some laws of the law requires improvement to improve their performance, cooperation and their work for the progress of the country,” he told the legislators.

Ziyambi said there is a lot of false information about the bill, especially on social networks.

“This bill does not give the president an extra term or a third term, it does not take away the right to vote, it does not suspend the elections, it does not put the power or control of the elections in the hands of the president,” he said.

Opponents, however, argue that the interpretation and interpretation of the amendment will strengthen President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s political influence and could pave the way for him to remain in office until his official term expires in 2028.

Bill threatens democracy

Supporters of the law, including MPs from the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), say the change will promote long-term continuity and give Mnangagwa more time to complete his development plan.

Gura was not satisfied.

He said two more years will not improve the lives of Zimbabweans who are struggling with poverty.

“Mnangagwa has failed in the last eight years. Only a few close to the ruling party are benefiting. The amount of time will not change,” he said.

The ZANU-PF party has been in power since Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980. Mnangagwa came to power in November 2017 after former president Robert Mugabe was removed from office following a military intervention.

Under the current constitution, Mnangagwa is due to step down in 2028.

One of the activists and human rights activist, Pride Mkono, said that the change will improve ZANU-PF’s rule.

“Since independence, the ZANU-PF party has dominated politics until 2000, when the opposition Movement for Democratic Change was challenged. However, the opposition is now weak and has no strength to fight them,” Mkono told Al Jazeera.

“Therefore, we will enter a one-party state, but controlled by a group of people.”

He said the purpose of the change was not to improve the lives of ordinary people.

“It means the continued decline of the economy and public services and the impoverishment of many people,” said Mkono.

Obert Masaraure, who is also the leader of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ), said that this change will seriously weaken the democratic governance that is progressing well in the country.

“Power will be taken away from the people, and the elites will seize the country’s wealth freely, exploit the workers, destroy the environment and insult our people without any restraint,” Masaraure told Al Jazeera.

Young people like Gura say they have no reason to believe that extending Mnangagwa’s tenure will help them to have hope.

He says that removing the direct election of the president would remove the citizens from one of the few ways to make leaders.

“This is a direct attack and an open act,” he said, adding that ZANU-PF promised jobs before the 2018 elections but failed.

Masaraure compared it to the colonial era.

“If you can’t vote, you can’t answer to anybody,” he said.

Violence is fear

A parliamentary committee report tabled in Parliament earlier this month said 99.4 per cent of the input it received from the national consultation was in favor of the change.

But the talks were marred by accusations of intimidation and violence.

Activists and suspected government security forces kidnapped and tortured several protesters against the law.

In Chiredzi, youths suspected of belonging to ZANU-PF beat up coordinator Gilbert Mutebuki after he stopped him from speaking against the law at the end of March.

Mr Gura said he also had the opportunity to speak with other citizens against the proposal.

Mr Rawlings Magede, who is a director of the Heal Zimbabwe Trust, has disputed the findings of the parliamentary committee.

“It is not true that many people are supporting the bill. Those who are supporting it are only a few who think that by supporting the bill they will get a reward. People are desperate for gifts,” Magede told Al Jazeera.

He said the amount of aid that is said to be available is misleading and does not reflect the opinion of the majority of Zimbabweans.

ZANU-PF controls the parliament

The ruling party controls the National Assembly and the Senate.

His parliamentary power increased after the 2023 elections, when Senator Sengezo Tshabangu recalled several CCC MPs, strengthening ZANU-PF’s position in parliament.

Critics say many of the remaining opposition MPs in parliament are politically vulnerable due to Tshabangu’s influence.

The opposition parties were divided and failed to strengthen the ruling party.

Mkono said that even though ZANU-PF has a two-thirds majority in parliament, the passing of the law was not in doubt.

To prevent lawmakers from voting independently, he said the party wanted an open vote by show of hands.

“This is clever intimidation and closes all channels of honest expression of MPs’ views. It is as old as it is demonic,” he said.

Wicknell Chivayo, a controversial businessman and friend of Mnangagwa, has been criticized by the opposition for trying to influence lawmakers through gifts of money and cars.

In April, he offered MPs $3.6m if they would approve the bill before withdrawing criticism from the public, including some ZANU-PF youth.

During the debate on the law, Chivayo gave cars and money to MPs Remigious Matangira and Samantha Mureyani after they spoke in support of them in Parliament. Opponents have described such gifts as incentives intended to support the bill.

Tatenda Chikumbu, from Kambuzuma which has a large population in the city of Harare, said he has little faith in MPs.

“If they can pay a bribe and vote for the bill, how can I trust that they will vote for the president if it is changed?” Beetle asked Al Jazeera.

Opposition MP Susan Matsunga, who received a car from Chivayo, supported the law during debates last week.

In a vote in the National Assembly on Thursday, more than 30 opposition lawmakers voted in favor of the bill.

Courts are the last resort

As the bill moves to the Senate, opponents are focusing on the courts.

Mkono said legal challenges could delay the project, but said political mobilization offers a powerful solution.

“People’s groups should be formed and all concerned Zimbabweans should come together to fight politics. This is the only way,” he said.

Several legal challenges are already in the courts.

Some citizens are suing their legislators because of the law. Some are opposing the proposal which could extend Mnangagwa’s term of office. Human rights activist Youngerson Matete went to the High Court to block the implementation of the law without a referendum.

However, many Zimbabweans have lost confidence in the judiciary, which critics accuse of lacking independence. The Constitutional Court has already started banning some cases on merits.

For Mr Gura, the situation continues in the coming elections.

The change in the constitution, he said, will shape the future of the country that his children will inherit.

“This is a direct attack on accountability and transparency,” he said.