SADC is said to have no concerns about Zimbabwe’s new law, Constitutional Amendment Act 3 (CAA3), which extended President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s second term, because all legal processes were followed in passing it.
The position was revealed by South African presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya on the sidelines of the recent SADC summit at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.
“You have to look at how the processes unfolded; it is a process that has kind of followed various domestic legal steps. Obviously, a process of that nature will draw some criticism; there will be others that express grievance against it,” said Magwenya.
“It is not really for SADC to comment on those domestic processes for as long as those processes are being carried out within domestic legal frameworks, which is what has happened in Zimbabwe.
“It is not something that SADC will express a view on because it has not constituted a crisis that the region needs to grapple with.”
CAA3, which was signed into law in July this year, has split opinion, with some opposition groups and churches arguing that it divides the nation and entrenches authoritarianism.
Among other things, it keeps Mnangagwa in power until 2030, instead of 2028 when his term had been due to end, and gives him powers to appoint 10 more senators, thereby giving control over the legislature.
The amendment also scrapped direct presidential elections – contests in which Mnangagwa has only narrowly secured at least 50 per cent in the two presidential elections he has contested.
More: NewZimbabwe.com
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