admin
Cde Chinamasa yesterday said if any political party did not approve the draft constitution, this means there was nothing to take to the All Second Stakeholders Conference.
Speaking from Mozambique where he is away on national duty, Cde Chinamasa said members of the management committee signed the document for the constitution making process to move to the next stage.
“The draft we initiated as negotiators is not a final document to be taken to the All Second Stakeholders’ Conference. The document is not conclusive and can be opened for discussion and alteration,” he said.
The Zanu-PF politburo met three times in a row and amended a number of sections in the draft constitution, which the party claimed were not a true reflection of the people’s contribution during the outreach programme.
Although Zanu-PF agreed with some of the issues, it felt a number of critical issues in the national report were left out and therefore did not endorse the document.
Reports say the MDC-T national council met for only one hour and endorsed the document, while the MDC met for 30 minutes and approved it.
Cde Chinamasa said members of the management committee were not the final word on the draft.
“As negotiators, we represented our respective political parties, not ourselves. We were not on the negotiating table as individuals and it means the document is subject to endorsement by the political parties.
“If any political party doesn’t approve the document we have produced there is nothing to take to the next stage,” he said.
Cde Chinamasa, who is also deputy secretary for legal affairs in Zanu-PF, said negotiators were just agents of principals and their parties, adding they should not take a lead in the process.
“We do not have power over the principals and party organs. That is why in our case we took the document to the politburo and the central committee for approval.
“These are the final arbiters of what we did so it’s not yet a done deal,” he said.
Cde Chinamasa said there was no way Zanu-PF would give a “sheepish response” to a “lifetime” document.
“We were very thorough and everytime finished late when we audited the document clause by clause, sentence by sentence and word by word . . . and that is commendable. This is a document for life and an important one in our history and no political party should take it lightly. Being a democratic and revolutionary party, we are bound to question whatever is in the document,” he said.
He dismissed reports that Zanu-PF was divided over the draft constitution.
Zanu-PF secretary for information and publicity, Cde Rugare Gumbo, recently said his party would give the document “the seriousness it deserves”, hence the reasons for spending many days auditing it.
MDC-T spokesperson Mr Douglas Mwonzora yesterday said the appendage of signatures by Zanu-PF marked the conclusion of the drafting process.
He said his party was not going to amend the document.
“A signature is not an insignificant and useless addition to a document. It means something, which in this case is conclusion and recording of an agreement. We are not going to make any changes because we respect the views of the people, views which may not be in tandem with our political philosophy,” he said.
MDC spokesperson, Mr Kurauone Chihwayi, said the document produced by Copac was final.
Online Reporter