CCC returns to parly
Peter Moyo
Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has ended its fortnight-long boycott of parliament that had been triggered by recalls on party MPs by self-proclaimed interim secretary general Sengezo Tshabangu.
On their return to the August House, the opposition MPs attended the official handover of the world-class parliament building in Mount Hampden from the Chinese to the Zimbabwean government.
Two weeks ago, leader of the opposition party, Nelson Chamisa declared that his MPs were “disengaging” from parliament and council to protest the axing of his MPs and councillors.
However, the boycott coincided with Speaker of Parliament’s suspension of CCC legislators for six sessions following skirmishes in parliament as the opposition MPs registered disapproval of the recalls on their colleagues.
The legislators have since taken the recall matter to court where they are challenging Tshabangu’s loci standi to recall them. They argue that Tshabangu is not a member of the CCC and does not have authority to recall elected party officials. The High Court will hear the matter on the 2nd of November.
“We are unable to make any political decisions while the case is still pending before the courts.
“We also have yet to explore all possible avenues to address the recall issue through consultations with key stakeholders,” said CCC Deputy Spokesperson, Gift Siziba.
Earlier this week, Mnangagwa set 9 December as the date of by-elections to fill the vacant seats caused by the Tshabangu recalls and 7 November as candidate nomination day. However, Chamisa says CCC will not be party to “criminal” by-elections.
