paragraph 1 reinforces the point

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One of the longstanding disputes between Zanu PF and MDC-T through the implementation of the Global Political Agreement has been over Robert Mugabe’s unilateral appointment of governors. Earlier this month Mugabe excarbated tensions by once again appointing governors and ambassadors without consulting Morgan Tsvangirai. This resulted in a frank press release being issued by the MDC-T party, in which Tsvangirai expressed some of his strongest words yet about the state of the GPA and his relationship with Mugabe, including the comment that
GPA Article 20 Supersedes Other Provisions of Constitution
“1. For the avoidance of doubt, the following provisions of the Interparty Political Agreement, being Article XX thereof, shall, during the subsistence of the Interparty Political Agreement, prevail notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Constitution.”
TRANSITIONAL AMENDMENTS AND PROVISIONS
In fact the particular part of the GPA which the appointments breached is now part of the Constitution. ?Constitution Amendment No. 19 provided for the insertion of Article 20 of the GPA as an integral part of the Constitution. ?It also made it clear beyond argument that during the life of the GPA, Article 20 prevails over other provisions of the Constitution.
“It should be made clear that the GPA itself is not the Constitution of Zimbabwe. For starters,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], there is nowhere in the Constitution of Zimbabwe or the GPA where it says President Mugabe must consult and get the consent of the Prime Minister when making key appointments such as those of provincial governors and judges.”
The full text of Article 20 – Framework for a New Government � of the GPA is then set out. Article 20 is definitely part of the Constitution.
The Constitution is amended by the insertion of the following Schedule after Schedule 7―
… the events of the past few months have left me sorely disappointed in Mr Mugabe, and in his betrayal of the confidence that I and many Zimbabweans have personally invested in him.
Once again Robert Mugabe is testing both his own crediblity, and along with it,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], the credibility of the region and the rest of the world too.
This entry was posted by Sokwanele on Monday, October 18th, 2010 at 12:14 pm. You can follow any comments on this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.
The issue of unilateral appointments is addressed as follows in the press release:
As you are aware, we have also had a dispute over the appointment of governors, along with a number of other unilateral and illegal appointments which the President has made following the signature of the GPA. The dispute over the former provincial governors effectively timed out when their terms of office expired in July. The country needed to appoint new governors according to the law and the constitution. The constitution clearly says that such appointments must be done in consultation with the Prime Minister.
Note: “Interparty Political Agreement” is the term used in the Constitution and Constitution Amendment No. 19 for what is almost invariably referred to as the Global Political Agreement or GPA.
The Constitution, as amended by Constitution Amendment No. 19, also contains two statements laying down the constitutional effect of Schedule 8 containing GPA Article 20:
“According to the GPA, the executive authority of the inclusive Government shall vest in, and be shared among, the President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet as provided for in the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
“SCHEDULE 8
(Section 115(2) and (3))
A week after the press release was issued, the state-controlled media (which continues to act principally in the interests of the Zanu PF party) extensively quoted the Zanu PF spokesman who argued that Morgan Tsvangirai, in objecting to the appointments, was attempting to subvert the constitution. Rugaro Gumbo’s argument on behalf of Zanu PF and Robert Mugabe centered on the view that the constitution takes priority over the clauses in the GPA, and that Robert Mugabe has overall authority:
Inclusion of Article 20 in Schedule 8 to Constitution
“We, therefore, call upon Morgan Tsvangirai to stop misleading the people of Zimbabwe and the international community to gain cheap political mileage.
Constitution Amendment No. 19 [section 15] inserted the text of Article 20 into the Constitution as Schedule 8:
“And the Head of that Government is President Mugabe who is also the Head of State and (therefore) chairs the Cabinet.
Veritas have since released a detailed examination of the relevant clauses, rebutting Gumbo’s argument:
FRAMEWORK FOR A NEW GOVERNMENT”.
“15 Insertion of Schedules 8 to Constitution
Schedule 8,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], paragraph 1 reinforces the point:
To my utter surprise, and shall I say disgust, Mr Mugabe advised me on Monday that he had Nicodemusly reappointed the former governors in the same manner in which he appointed the previous governors on a Sunday when most of us were at church. I say “Nicodemusly” because those who are supposed to be served by these governors � the citizens of Zimbabwe � knew nothing about it.
“(2) Schedule 8 shall have effect from the date of commencement of the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 19) Act, 2008, and continue in force during the subsistence of the Interparty Political Agreement.
Sections 115(2) and (3) provide as follows:
“President Mugabe and Zanu-PF are committed to the Global Political Agreement and have always been adhering to its principles and dictates.
They were hoping for governors to be appointed who would serve in the interests of the people of Zimbabwe, not in the interests of the President and his party, as has been the case until now. The Prime Minister, who has to consent to their appointments, knew nothing about it.
Veritas demonstrate as follows:
It is clear then, that Mugabe is acting unilaterally and outwith the bounds of both Zimbabwe’s constitution and the Global Political? Agreement. For many, the nitty-gritty detail of who is right and who is wrong is irritating and even boring, and unfortunately this tends to afford Mugabe with the slack he needs to get his own way and do what he wants regardless. In cases like this the detail is everything: Zanu PF are in the wrong and they are flagrantly lying about it to the people through the state-controlled press. The question now is whether the international community will recognise the illegal appointment of some foreign ambassadors in their countries, and if the region will demand that Mugabe reigns himself in, and starts to comply with the Global Political Agreement and the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
(3) The provisions of this Constitution shall, for the period specified in subsection (2), operate as amended or modified to the extent or in the manner specified in Schedule 8”.