Source: Traditional Leaders’ Amendment Bill to strengthen community governance – herald
Debra Matabvu
Senior Reporter
GOVERNMENT will ensure the roles of traditional leaders are aligned with the country’s legal frameworks and institutions to safeguard cultural heritage, strengthen community leadership structures, and advance national development aspirations, a Cabinet minister has said.
Speaking at the ongoing Traditional Leaders Amendment Bill three-day workshop in Harare on Thursday, Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe said traditional leaders were a vital cog in the attainment of Vision 2030; therefore, their views should be taken into account in the country’s constitution.
The workshop seeks to have the traditional leaders’ input on the crafting of the traditional leaders’ amendment bill. There are two traditional leaders’ bills, one crafted in 2014 and the other in 2021.
The Government now seeks to consolidate the two and come up with a bill that aligns the roles and functions of traditional leaders with the 2013 Constitution, which recognises their importance alongside modern governance structures.
The bill also seeks to clarify the involvement of traditional leaders in provincial councils, which are a key feature of the Government’s devolution efforts under the 2013 Constitution, among other issues.
Minister Garwe said issues such as appointments of chiefs, traditional leaders’ functions and mandates, among others, should be fully addressed.
“The bill must also support our national development priorities, rural transformation, climate resilience, and inclusive community participation, among others,” he said. “
A strong, well-structured institution of traditional leadership is indispensable to the achievement of our national vision, Vision 2030.
“This workshop is an opportunity for us to critically examine the strengths and weaknesses of the current framework and collectively recommend improvements. Issues such as the appointment of chiefs, functions and mandates of traditional leaders, administrative support systems, ethical leadership, dispute resolution mechanisms and processes, among others, must all be addressed with clarity and insight.
“We must be able to discuss openly and freely, interrupting all the expectations and wishes coming from our traditional leadership.”
Minister Garwe also directed the traditional leaders to ensure their discussions include issues of reparations.
“Those expectations must necessarily also include the issue of reparations, which is a very fundamental programme that His Excellency has directed this ministry, working with the traditional leadership, to embark on,” he added.
“For a hundred years, we were under the leadership, the brutal leadership, of East World colonisers. For those hundred years, they plundered our world.
“For those hundred years, they killed innocent people. They raped innocent women. The brutality that we were exposed to should not be overemphasised.
“This is an opportunity for not only Zimbabwe but for Africa to claim that which was stolen from us: our minerals, our artefacts, our wealth in general. We must find space in this draft bill to include the business section that speaks about reparations going forward.”
He said the legal frameworks in the country will continue to fully recognise the role played by traditional leaders in the socio-economic development of the country.
“This process is not merely administrative, but it is also foundational to preserving our cultural heritage and enhancing community leadership structures, as well as aligning with our national development aspirations, particularly that of becoming an upper-middle-income economy by 2030,” Minister Garwe said.
“Traditional leaders occupy pivotal roles in our society. They are custodians of our culture and ancestral heritage. They are guardians of our social cohesion. They resolve conflicts, maintain community harmony, and support government programmes at the grassroots level. They provide leadership in our communities.
“Their leadership, therefore, contributes significantly to peace-building, environmental stewardship, community mobilisation, and the preservation of Zimbabwean identity.”
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