Speaker row stalls Parly

of Assembly pending finalisation of logistics and other legal requirements to elect a new Speaker .
This follows the Supreme Court’s recent nulli-fication of Mr Lovemore Moyo’s election.
Addressing the media at Parliament Building in Harare yesterday, Mr Zvoma said Mr Moyo would not sit in the House of Assembly because he had lost his post.
He said Mr Moyo had effectively been a de facto Speaker and decisions he had made remai-ned legally and procedurally valid.
This came as MDC-T withdrew its High Court case in which it wanted Mr Moyo declared Mato-bo North legislator.
Mr Moyo vacated the seat when he assumed the Speaker’s role.
Said Mr Zvoma: “The Constitution, Standing Orders and the Supreme Court ruling oblige us to go back to the beginning to procedurally and lawfully fill the vacancy in the office of the Speaker created by the dissolution of Parliament at the beginning of 2008.
“Accordingly, I, as the Clerk of Parliament duly mandated to comply with the provisions of the Constitution and Standing Orders, do hereby announce that the election of the Speaker will take place on a future date to be announced in due course.”
President Mugabe will set the election date.
Asked to comment on Attorney-General Mr Johannes Tomana’s legal opinion that Mr Moyo reverts to being an MP, Mr Zvoma said he was not bound by opinions.
“If it was a directive given by a person competent to give the Clerk of Parliament directives, I would jump and act accordingly but it was an opinion and it is up to the clerk to make a decision.”
The courts rather than the AG, said Mr Zvoma, were the ultimate authority on legal matters.
“If I had three opinions, are you saying I should obey all of them?
“We are retracing where we went wrong and we are retracing in regards to the election of the Speaker,” he said.
Nearly all MDC-T MPs had turned up at Parliament and insisted that an election for a new Speaker be held. Mr Moyo was in the Chamber yesterday afternoon.
MDC has, however, said it will not take part in the election in what is believed to be revenge on both Zanu-PF and MDC-T for not supporting party leader Professor Welshman Ncube in his internal battle with Prof Arthur Mutambara.
In an interview, Zanu-PF Chief Whip Cde Jo-ram Gumbo said MDC-T’s insistence on an election was indicative of their ignorance of the law.
“An election of the Speaker is done with the authority of the President.
“What happened is that the Speaker’s election was challenged in a court of law and his election was nullified.
“When Moyo was elected, that directive was not fulfilled so the Clerk should notify the President that the directive to hold an election for the Speaker was not fulfilled so that he sets a new date,” he said.
Cde Gumbo said the Clerk had no legal autho-rity to set the date for the election of the Speaker of the House of Assembly.
Zanu-PF is expected to hold a caucus today to discuss the election of the Speaker.
In an address to journalists afterwards, MDC-T secretary-general Mr Tendai Biti castigated Mr Zvoma for “unilaterally” postponing the House sitting.
“Nowhere in the law does the Clerk or anyone for that matter have the right to move the date forward.
“Quite clearly, the unilateral adjournment of Parliament by Zvoma was meant to avoid the holding of the election,” said Mr Biti.
He said his party would consider approaching the High Court to ensure that the Constitution was complied with.
Lawyers representing dethroned Speaker Mr Moyo withdrew their court challenge to have Mr Moyo declared a sitting MP.
“By 2:15pm yesterday, the sitting time for Parliament, our court case had not been set down for hearing.
“It was, therefore, clear that any court order that would have been issued thereafter, would not have affected the course of business in Parliament.
“On account of the delays that would have affected our client, we decided to withdraw the urgent chamber application,” said Mr Chris Mhike, Mr Moyo’s lawyer.

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