….says consultations a waste of money
Lloyd Shunje in Mutare
09 MArc 2017, MUTARE – A parliamentary portfolio committee which hosted abortive hearings on the proposed changes to the constitution in Mutare last week has been accused of lacking seriousness and squandering public resources.
Residents told TellZim News that the committee had taken Mutare residents for granted because its members had turned up for the meeting very late.
“It’s a waste of public resources. How can you have two parliamentarians coming to a meeting they are supposed to lead very late? They are staying in expensive hotels and lodges and are receiving hefty allowances for doing nothing serious,” said one resident who spoke after the meeting was aborted.
Another resident said the consultations were a gimmick to portray the exercise as an act of democracy when it is all clear that the amendments will be passed regardless of what the public says.
“If the government wants the amendments to pass, they will pass. The reintroduction of the senate in 2005 was not liked but it passed, the constitution itself would not have passed in 2013 if Zanu PF did not like it. Recently, we saw the Urban Councils Amendment Bill being positioned for passage despite that it was overwhelmingly rejected by the people. Why waste resources then?” fumed the resident.
The meeting at Queens Hall degenerated into chaos after Gokwe-Nembudziya Member of Parliament Justice Mayor Wadyajena and Mutasa South MP Irene Zindi pranced into the hall late.
This annoyed participants who felt the two were not taking the programme seriously.
Committee leader, Ziyambi Ziyambi tried to suspend proceedings in order to introduce the two late comers but ordinary participants refused to listen to him, shouting that Wadyejena and Zindi did not deserve any courtesy.
“I can’t stop for late comers. They will be introduced at the end of the meeting, we are here for a serious issue,” said a man whom Ziyambi had ordered to stop his contributions to allow for the introductions.
Ziyambi then tried to use his power as chairperson and ordered the man not to speak again.
Participants, however, demanded that the two MPs apologise for coming late but they flatly refused.
“I am not going to apologise for coming late because I had other work commitments,” retorted Wadyajena.
Speaking after the abortion of the meeting, another committee member, Innocent Gonese blamed Ziyambi for failing to handle the situation.
“It’s sad that the meeting had to end this way but the chairman lost it. He failed to handle the situation well. Rather, he became too emotional and could not reach a point of understanding with the residents,” said Gonese.
If passed, the amendments will allow the President to appoint the Chief Justice at his own discretion and will do away with the current requirements for candidates to undergo interviews by the Judicial Services Commission (JSC).local
