BILL WATCH 24/2016

[6th June 2016]

Parliament resumes sittings on Tuesday 7th June

Parliamentarians return to work this week, with committee meetings commencing on Monday and the Senate and the National Assembly sitting on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  Details of committee meetings were circulated in Bill Watch Committee Series 21/2016 of 3rd June.  This bulletin covers business likely to be handled by the Senate and the National Assembly during the week.

Acts of 2015 – the Complete List

All Acts of 2015 are now in force.  The following table lists them in numerical order, showing Act number of 2015, and dates of gazetting and commencement. 

Correct Number of Banking Amendment Act Bill Watch 22/2016 of 16th May incorrectly described the Banking Amendment Act, gazetted on 13th May, as Act No. 1 of 2016.  It is in fact Act No. 12 of 2015, as shown above.

Coming up in the National Assembly

Bills

Local Government Laws Amendment Bill   Although not yet listed, the Bill could be presented and referred to the Parliamentary Legal Committee [PLC] for its report on constitutional compliance.  The Bill has already been publicly condemned as making unconstitutional provisions for removal of local government councillors and mayors from office.  There will be Public Hearings on it around the country from 13th to 17th June.  [For Veritas’ analysis of the Bill, including the constitutional angle, please refer to Constitution Watches 9/2016 dated 4th June and 10/2016 dated 5th June.]

Special Economic Zones Bill  The Bill was amended in the Committee Stage and referred back to the PLC.  On 18th May the PLC’s non-adverse report on the amendments was announced.  The Bill can now be finalised and sent to the Senate. 

Zimbabwe National Defence University Bill  This Bill [available from Veritas – use this link] will come back to the National Assembly for approval of an amendment hastily made in the Senate on 19th May at the request of the Deputy Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development.  This amendment now needs the approval of the National Assembly.  This development occurred despite earlier approval of the Bill by both Houses [final votes in National Assembly on 1st March, Senate on 8th March].  On 18th May the President of the Senate explained the need to re-open the Bill as follows—

“Parliament had been informed by the Office of the President and Cabinet that His Excellency the President had assigned the administration of the Bill to the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development, and this had necessitated the recommittal of the Bill in terms of Standing Order No. 139.”  [Note: The Standing Order provides for the re-committal of a Bill for correction of errors coming to light after it has been read for the third time but has not yet been sent to the President for assent.]

The effect of the amendment is to make the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development [instead of the Minister of Defence] responsible for the administration of the Act that this Bill may become in due course.  The amended definition of “Minister” will be “… means the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development or any other Minister to whom the President may from time to time assign the administration of this Act”. 

Comment 1: The amendment creates an extraordinary situation.  The Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development will have Ministerial responsibility for an institution that is, according to its Act, “established as a service of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces in terms of the Constitution” [Bill, clause 3] and will, therefore, have to be maintained as a “disciplined military service” [Constitution, section 211(4)].  Moreover, the Minister will be saddled with an Act prepared by the Ministry of Defence and piloted through Parliament in March by the Minister of Defence – who insisted in debate that it was essential for a National Defence University to be the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence.  A recipe for inter-Ministry conflict?  

Comment 2:  The President could, of course, have avoided troubling Parliament at all.  He could have decided to give effect to this last-minute policy shift on Ministerial responsibility by gazetting an assignment to the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, etc., in the same Government gazette as the Act.     

Motions 

Unmoved motions near the top of the agenda include—

- motions to take note of the Report of the Election Observation Mission to last October’s Tanzanian General Election and the Report on the State of Preparedness of ZEC to Hold Elections by the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.

- Call for Government to subsidise the cost of blood for blood transfusions and encourage blood donations, to be moved by Hon Nduna [ZANU-PF] and Hon Labode [MDC-T].

Question Time [Wednesday 8th June]  47 questions with notice are listed, all carried forward from the last Question Time on 18th May.

Coming up in the Senate

Bills  

Public Finance Management Amendment Bill   This is due to be dealt with this week.  It was passed on 12th May by the National Assembly.  The Second Reading stage will start with an explanatory speech about the Bill by or on behalf of the responsible Minister, the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. 

Other Bills likely to come up from National Assembly  

- The Special Economic Zones Bill, as amended, may reach the Senate, if completed by the National Assembly.

Less advanced along the path through the National Assembly [see above] are—

- Pan-African Minerals University of Science and Technology Bill

- Minerals Exploration and Marketing Corporation Bill

Adverse PLC report on SI 24/2016 – Insurance (Amendment) Regulations  This adverse report [available from Veritas – follow this link] has been listed for discussion for a long time.  The regulations have not been repealed or amended by a fresh statutory instrument.  It is time for the matter to be resolved by the National Assembly, so that stakeholders know whether the regulations are to be repealed or amended – which they certainly should be, not only because of the constitutional issues raised by the PLC but also because they contain ultra vires elements and are badly drafted and confusing for the reader.      

Motions

Improvement of Zimbabwe’s transportation system  Senator Lusaka’s motion is item 3 on the Order Paper.

Devolution Also listed is Senator Ncube’s motion calling for implementation of devolution under the Constitution.

Question Time [Thursday 9th June] There are 12 questions listed for Ministers.

Status of Bills as at 3rd June

There is no change from the Status of Bills reflected in Bill Watch 23/2016 of 30th May.

Government Gazette 3rd June

Statutory Instruments

Collective bargaining agreement: Tourism Industry  SI 54/2016 affects provisions of the principal agreement [SI 124/2013] and refers to (1) fixed term contracts of employment becoming contracts without time limits and (2) aspects the meaning of continuous service.

Securities and Exchange Commission – Central Securities Depositories  SI 55/2016 amends section 4 of the Central Securities Depositories Rules [SI 63/2013], to include provision for the Commission to waive the limits on shareholdings in or control of operators of central securities depositories.

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