The Constitution Defenders Forum (CDF) has called for an immediate suspension of the ongoing public hearings on Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3, arguing that the process is constitutionally flawed and fundamentally illegitimate.
In a statement issued on 1 April 2026, CDF National Spokesperson Jacob Rukweza said that acts of intimidation and disorder have marred the public hearings.
He said this represents a clear violation of citizens’ constitutional rights, including freedom of expression, assembly, and association. Said Rukweza:
“The violence and systematic disruptions have rendered the public hearings a complete farce, an exercise that appears designed to manufacture legitimacy for an already predetermined outcome rather than to genuinely solicit the views of citizens.
“Parliament cannot be said to have sufficiently discharged its constitutional obligation under Section 141 to facilitate meaningful public involvement in legislative processes.”
Rukweza claimed that during the public hearings in Bulawayo, proceedings were abruptly ended less than 30 minutes before the scheduled finish, while at Nketa Hall, the session was cut short following submissions by a human rights activist. He said:
“There were also indications of bused participants, both at the City Hall and Nketa Hall venues, where buses were seen dropping off participants who did not appear to be from Bulawayo. Buses with visible Gokwe signs were seen.
“In Harare, at the City Sports Centre, opposition figures were effectively denied the opportunity to speak and had to be escorted to safety by their personal security.
“Monitors recorded that only approximately 35 to 36 individuals spoke at the Bulawayo City Hall hearing and a mere 13 at Nketa Hall, bringing the total number of speakers in a city of over one million residents to just 49 or 50 individuals.
“This reflects a grossly inadequate and exclusionary process, where only a skeletal fraction of attendees was able to make submissions, thereby silencing the overwhelming majority.”
Rukweza also said the police were conspicuously absent, allowing brazen acts of criminality to occur with impunity, including the theft of human rights lawyer Douglas Coltart’s cellphone and the physical assault on him. Said Rukweza:
“This points to a failure, whether of capacity or willingness, to maintain law and order.
“Ultimately, it is indicative of choreographed suppression of citizens’ rights and freedoms.
“Under such blatantly divisive and repressive circumstances, these hearings cannot be allowed to proceed.”
The CDF said the Constitutional Amendment process should be properly and lawfully conducted through a national referendum, ensuring that the will of the people is genuinely and transparently determined.
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