Gonese referes Bill

The motion on the Bill has been on the Senate’s Order Paper since October last year without Mr Gonese reviving debate. Mr Gonese referred the Bill to the Global Political Agreement negotiators after it emerged that it contravened some provisions of the GPA. This was despite that the Bill had passed through the Lower House and was set for final debate in the Senate.

Mr Gonese said he now wanted to give the GPA negotiators a chance to deliberate on the Bill.
“I referred it to the negotiators, but I have not heard any feedback from them concerning the issue,” he said.
Mr Gonese said he was keen to know the outcome of the negotiators concerning the issues he raised in the      Bill.

“It’s my right to push for any amendments on any legislation, but where you can find another platform when you can discuss, that would be good. I wanted to give a chance to negotiators” he said.
Senate had shot down the motion on the Bill after accepting arguments by Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa that it was not properly brought before Senate.

Minister Chinamasa said Mr Gonese was smuggling issues that were under consideration by GPA negotiators.
He told Senate that it was important to realise that Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations were all ruling parties.

It was, therefore, not plausible, he said, for a legislator from any of the three political parties to bring a private member’s Bill.