BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI
The government signalled major concessions on key provisions of Constitutional Amendment No. 3 on Wednesday, saying it would abandon proposed changes affecting the Zimbabwe Gender Commission and retain restrictions on political involvement by traditional leaders following recommendations from Parliament and public consultations.
Presenting his response to the second-reading debate in the National Assembly, Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said government had been guided by recommendations from a parliamentary joint committee that reviewed public submissions on the Bill.
One of the most significant reversals concerns the Zimbabwe Gender Commission. Ziyambi acknowledged that lawmakers from across the political divide had opposed proposals affecting the commission and said government would respect the recommendation that it remain in place.
“The Honourable House’s recommendation found an echo across the aisle,” Ziyambi said, noting that legislators from both ruling and opposition benches had argued for the commission’s retention. He added that while government had originally proposed the changes in pursuit of institutional efficiency, public consultations had produced a clear consensus.
“Government stands guided by that recommendation. Let no one say the people spoke into the wind,” he told Parliament.
The minister also indicated that government would back away from proposed changes relating to the political participation of traditional leaders.
The Bill had sought to address what government described as a contradiction in the Constitution, where chiefs sit and vote in Parliament but are expected to remain outside partisan politics. While some public submissions supported expanding the political role of chiefs, the parliamentary committee concluded that traditional leaders should remain politically neutral because they preside over customary courts.
Ziyambi said government had accepted that reasoning.
“The joint committee identified the decisive principle – our chiefs preside over courts of customary law and those who sit in judgment must stand apart from partisan contest,” he said. “Government is persuaded and will be guided by the Committee’s recommendation that the status quo remains.”
The minister also addressed the future of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC), whose constitutional lifespan expired in 2023. He said the closure of the commission would not mean an end to reconciliation efforts, adding that government would seek legal mechanisms to continue work on healing, justice and national unity.
The concessions mark some of the most notable changes to emerge from the consultation process around Amendment No. 3 and suggest that public hearings and parliamentary scrutiny influenced the government’s final position on several contentious clauses. The joint committee had earlier recommended retaining the Gender Commission and rejecting proposed changes affecting traditional leaders.
