1. 22 May 2020 marks 7 years since Zimbabwe adopted a new Constitution. A transitional provision gave the government a 7 year grace period within which to appoint judges of a new Constitutional Court. We are just a few hours from the deadline & the government has not complied.
2. So tomorrow they are probably going to play kiya-kiya with the Constitution. They are going to handpick 5 judges & say they are “acting judges”. Meanwhile the system waits for Constitutional Amendment No. 2 to allow ED to handpick judges for that court. Current rules ignored.
3. They had 7 years to prepare for this day; they could have started the interviewing process long back. Instead they chose to amend the Constitution to give ED unilateral powers of appointment, avoiding the open, transparent & accountable process in the Constitution.
4. When you hear them talk about constitutionalism you would think they are faithful disciples of it. The Constitution is there but it has been blatantly ignored because it is convenient. So tomorrow, you will hear them pontificate about constitutionalism & the rule of law.
5. And here is the biggest irony: if anyone has a problem with this disregard of the Constitution, they will have to approach the same Court for relief. You can see why the whole thing is farcical when those who should be guardians of the Constitution surrender responsibility.
