Zimbawe’s myriad problems are rooted in the defective and undemocratic constitution that was bequethed to us by our former colonial masters at Lancaster House,London,in December 1979 ultimately giving rise to our independence on April 18,1980.The deficiencies of the Lancaster House Constitution,which has been amended a record nineteen (19) times in less than thirty years,clearly gave rise to the serious democratic deficit that has been haunting our motherland since independence.
A constitution is the country’s supreme law and thus,it must be crafted with the best interests of the country at heart.A constitution is a solemn document that binds a nation together ; attempting to achieve national cohesion amidst competing interests that ordinarily arise in circumstances of ethnic,cultural,social and racial diversity.Weak constitutions invariably give rise to dysfunctional nations that are always torn apart by political rivalries,economic stagnation and generalised social deprivation.
The on-going constitution-making process should mark a defining moment in the history of Zimbabwe.We should sieze this opportunity to exhibit our maturity as a nation state and also to prove to the entire universe that Zimbabweans are able to craft a new democratic constitution for themselves and by themselves.A lot has been said about the present constitution-making process,both good and bad and it shall not be the intention of this article to blame-apportion and/or to seek to take sides with anyone or any organisation.
We shoud always look at the bigger picture for our country.We are crafting the supreme law of Zimbabwe for ourselves,for our children,for our grandchildren and indeed,for posterity.History will judge us very harshly if we miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take part in the drafting of our own home-grown constitution.When we refer to a home-grown constitution it would be folly on our part if we choose to bury our heads in the sand and pretend that we should not learn from the experiences of other countries that have crafted their own democratic constitutions before us.
Learning has no barriers and wisdom cannot and will never be confined within the geographical borders of any one country,Zimbabwe included.I was dumb-founded by the furor that was caused by a certain group of legislators when the Parliamentary Select Committee on the Constitution indicated that they had intended to invite Cyril Ramaphosa and a certain Rwandese legislator to be guest speakers at the first all-stakeholders conference that opens in Harare on Monday, July 13, 2009.This group of legislators went into a frenzy at the joint Parliamentary caucus that was held in the House of Assembly chambers on Monday,July 6, 2009.They huffed and puffed ; punching their fists furiously in the air and swearing that no ” foreigners” should be involved in our constitution-making process.As I sat next to Honourable John Nyamande in the Lower House chambers during that joint caucus,I silently wondered as to what had befallen our collegues.Their boisterous oppostion to any attempt to invite Ramaphosa and the Rwandese legislator clearly and unfortunately betrayed their lack of knowledge of the crucial need to tape from the wisdom of our brothers and sisters within Africa when it comes to how exactly we can craft our own unique Zimbabwean and democratic constitution.People who want to acquire knowledge never hesitate to share ideas with other people; even foreigners.
There is no denying the fact that Cyril Ramaphosa is an accomplished lawyer,politician,negotiator and businessman.The role that he played in the moulding of the 1996 Constitution of South Africa is well-documented in the annals of African history.To invite such a celebrated individual to be one of the guest speakers at the first all-stakeholders conference is certainly not to reduce our constitution-making process into a ” foreign” dominated exercise.Going forward,I sincerely hope and trust that this group of legislators will broaden their intellectual horizon and appreciate that there is absolutely nothing wrong from learning from the relevant experiences of other people on the African continent.After all,that is what Pan-Africanism is all about.
In certain political circles,there has also been a concerted effort to mislead the people regarding the Kariba Draft of September 2007.The Kariba Draft was not people-driven.It was the culmination of negotiations amongst three political parties i.e.the two MDC formations and ZANU(PF).It is true that Tendai Biti,Patrick Chinamasa and Welshman Ncube appended their signatures on every page of the Kariba Draft.But then this doesnot mean that the Kariba Draft is acceptable to the people simply because the representatives of three political parties signed the document.
Zimbabwe is indeed bigger than the MDC and ZANU(PF) combined.Put differently,it doesnot mean that every Zimbabwean is a member of either ZANU(PF) or the two MDC formations.The Kariba Draft was exclusively authored by politicians and to that extent,it is anything but people-driven.People have been fed lies about the true input of the Kariba Draft.A myopic attempt has been desperately made to state that the Global Political Agreement( GPA) that was solemnised in Harare on September 15,2008 makes the Kariba Draft the ” reference” document for the new constitution.This is a lie.A blue lie.Nowhere in Article 6 of the GPA is it unequivocally stated that the Kariba Draft should be the ONLY reference document for the constitution-making process.
For the record,Article 6 of the GPA states that : ” It is the fundamental right and duty of the Zimbabwean people to make a constitution BY THEMSELVES and FOR THEMSELVES.” Surely,one doesnot have to be an expert in constitutional law to appreciate the input of Article 6 of the GPA! Some politicians, in a desperate attempt to serve their own selfish and parochial interests, have sought to impose the Kariba Draft on the people.The truth of the matter is that this will not work.Zimbabweans are a clever people.They know that it is their duty and right to draft a democratic constitution for themselves.Any attempt to force the Kariba Draft down the people’s throats will be thunderously resisted.It will not succeed.
Every Zimbabwean,throughout the 1938 wards across the country,should be given an opportunity to give his/her input regarding what they want to see included in a new constitution.Zimbabweans in the Diaspora should also be involved in the constitution-making process.All civil society organisations,including the National Constitutional Assembly(NCA), should also be involved in this historic process.The people of Zimbabwe must own the constitution-making process.
I am reliably informed that an independent chairperson will be appointed to steer the process after the first all-stakeholders conference in an attempt to remove the notion that presently,the process is driven and thus,controlled, by politicians.In the unlikely event that the constitution-making process is aborted, it simply means that Zimbabwe will remain a pariah state.We cannot afford to let this golden opportunity escape us.We owe it to future generations.Without a new democratic and people-driven constitution,Zimbabwe is doomed.
Editor’s note: Obert Gutu is the MDC Senator for Chisipite and a member of the party’s National Legal Committee.
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