Source: Parly consolidates public submissions on Amendment No.3 Bill – herald
Herald Reporter
PARLIAMENT is this week expected to complete consolidating submissions from members of the public on the Constitutional Amendment No.3 Bill before coming up with a report that will be tabled in the House during the Second Reading of the Bill.
Parliament sittings are set to resume on June 2 after having adjourned to allow processing of the presentations.
Proposals were made through hand deliveries to Parliament, via email and during public hearings held between March 31 and April 2 nationwide.
In an interview last week, Clerk of Parliament Mr Kennedy Chokuda, said they were processing entries received during the 90-day consultations, which were conducted countrywide.
“We are going through the submissions that were coming in hard copies, as they were coming in. So now we are dealing with the ones that came last minute and I can assure you the participation of the public has been very overwhelming.
“We have never received submissions like this and we are very grateful to the citizens of Zimbabwe.
“We are happy as Parliament because it confirms that we put in place mechanisms to enable the public to participate.
“We are very happy about that,” he said.
Mr Chokuda said the next stage involved analysing the proposals received from the public.
He said committees would then consolidate the entries before compiling reports to be tabled during the Second Reading stage of the Bill.
“The next stage, like I indicated, is analysis of the input from the public.
“Like I indicated, we are going through each and every submission and looking at the contents that are coming from those submissions.
“The committees will be sitting to look at those submissions and to categorise them in terms of how they are coming from the public.
“Thereafter, they will finalise the consolidation of the submissions to come up with their reports. That will then be presented at the Second Reading stage of the Bill,” he said.
Mr Chokuda said the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs will formally present the Bill in Parliament through the First Reading process.
“The next stage will be when the minister will formally now present the Bill in Parliament after the elapse of the 90 days where he does the first reading and like the usual process, the first reading is simply the Minister reading the long title of the Bill.
“There is no discussion or debate that happens at that stage,” he said.
Mr Chokuda said substantive debate on the Bill will only commence during the Second Reading stage.
“The substantive debate happens at the second reading stage where the ministers will come in and then go into details in terms of motivating the Bill, explaining the Bill to members of Parliament.
“Then the chairperson of the relevant committee will then present the report of the committee, including the findings from the public and the recommendations of the committee. Thereafter, all the other members of Parliament will then participate in the debate. So that’s the next stage,” he said.
Mr Chokuda said unlike ordinary Bills, the Constitutional Amendment No.3 Bill will not be referred to the Parliamentary Legal Committee after the First Reading because it sought to amend the Constitution.
He added that after the Second Reading stage, Parliament will proceed to the Committee stage where legislators would scrutinise the Bill clause by clause.
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