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SENATE HANSARD 14 FEBRUARY 2024 VOL 33 NO 26
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 14th February, 2024
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE in the Chair)
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: Thank you Mr. President. I move that Order of the Day, Number 1 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE ELECTORAL COMMISSION FOR THE 2023 HARMONISED ELECTIONS
Second Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission for the 2023 Harmonised Elections.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TSOMONDO: Thank you very much Mr. President for allowing me to stand up and support the ZEC Report which was presented by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Hon. Ziyambi. First and foremost…
An Hon. Member having passed between the Chair and the Hon. Member speaking.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Order, you may not cross the line between me and the Hon. Sen who is presenting. Proceed Hon. Senator.
HON. SEN. TSOMONDO: First and foremost, personally, I regard the election as free and fair. ZEC made sure voter education was done without leaving any household unattended and for some of the households who were not present during voter education, officers would make sure they revisited the households to make sure everyone was well attended to, got education and understood. No reports of violence were made and everyone had the freedom of campaigning as long as rallies were properly booked. No party was denied to gather and air their views without fear or favour. Perpetrators of violence were dealt with accordingly despite which party they were from.
ZEC presiding officers made sure that everyone who voted was in the voters’ roll and had a valid national I. D. card or passport regarded as Zimbabwean. Under normal circumstances, voting commenced unanimously nationwide. During voting, the elderly, handicapped, breastfeeding mothers and in fact all those with different disabilities were highly prioritised and the system was fast and easy to understand.
ZEC made sure that agents from all parties were present in every polling station to ensure the absence of rigging. Some agents were inside the polling stations and others were outside to make sure that no campaigning was done at polling stations. The Zimbabwe Republic Police was geared up and vigilantly on the watch for any barbaric behaviours. The Commission made sure that all proceedings were aired on the national radio to safeguard security and transparency. In other words, the polling stations were conducive for voting.
Local and foreign observers also took part in the 2023 harmonised elections. The observers were allowed access to polling stations, they were also allowed to pose random questions to party agents and polling officers. The voting process was conducted by qualified teams of civil servants equipped with the requisite knowledge after being trained by ZEC officials.
ZEC made sure that V11 forms were posted outside every polling station. These forms are displayed to inform the actual outcomes of the poll results at every polling station. Also among observers, there was the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) body. They produced a report after elections reflecting that the elections were conducted freely and fairly. This body consists of various members from different countries. This shows that transparency was inevitable and elections were free, hence the landslide victory for His Excellency the President, E.D. Mnangagwa. We congratulate you President E.D. Mnangagwa for a vibrant and sound victory.
HON. SEN. S. MOYO: Thank you very much President of the Senate. I will take this opportunity to add my views as a concerned Zimbabwean about the report that was done by Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs. I will start by addressing the white elephant in the room where we all know that the elections were rigged. SADC and the African Union (AU) were witnesses in these shambled elections.
Mr. President, I stand here with a heart full of disappointment after witnessing other Hon. Senators praising the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) for their irresponsibility. Yesterday we needed to ask honest fundamental questions on what accountability and responsibility is.
We all recall the pre-election problems which we encountered and ZEC refused to put necessary political and constitutional electoral reforms in place. Errors and manipulation were the order of the day. These stemmed from the crazy nomination fee challenges, sponsoring of fake double candidates and the unfair disqualification of members.
Everyone is aware of the harassments that we were subjected to before, during and after elections. We cannot sit here like we did yesterday and lie to each other saying ZEC did a good job. We all witnessed the shameful events that occurred on the days of voting despite ZEC having been given five years to prepare. ZEC failed to deliver voting ballots and materials on time.
Mr. President, can anyone tell me what Government position Forever Associate Zimbabwe (FAZ) holds? We saw the involvement of FAZ throughout the country in their attempt to discourage and slow down the voting process. They used propaganda papers on voting days by setting up illegal tables to intimidate the people of Zimbabwe.
We all noticed and witnessed the balanced and fair observer reports from our SADC and AU brothers and sisters who condemned the outcome of the electoral process by declaring it as a non-event. They proceeded to declare themselves winners and formed an illegitimate and disputed Government. So do not come here and waste our time and tell us …
HON. SEN. NCUBE: On a point of order Mr. President Sir!
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Order, order, Hon. Sen. Moyo, please sit down. I warned Hon. Sen. Chabuka yesterday about using unparliamentary language. You will withdraw what you said just now. Are you saying that I am wasting my time sitting here?
HON. SEN. S. MOYO: I withdraw Mr. President of Senate.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: I am not warning you again.
HON. SEN. S. MOYO: Yes, protect me from the Hon. Senators.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Order, order. Speak, I gave you the permission to speak.
HON. SEN. S. MOYO: Thank you Mr. President Sir. ZEC was useless and did not uphold their mission to serve as an independent body. They allowed… - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Order, order! – [HON. SEN. S. MOYO: I said ZEC!] – Order! Sit down, order. We will listen to the Hon. Senator in silence. He has got the floor, let us listen to him.
HON. SEN. S. MOYO: Thank you Mr. President for protecting me. They allowed voter intimidation, suppression, manipulation and allowed command voting where traditional leaders were forced to influence their respective villagers. Even a blind man is aware that the people of Bulawayo and Harare were not afforded their right to vote. Ballot papers were either not delivered timeously or not delivered at all, which led to midnight printing of ballot papers and voting. There were also errors in the printing of the Presidential ballot paper lay-out to trick voters and voter displacement, resulting in names being mixed up in different polling stations. The absence of the voters’ roll and the use of untested ink at polling stations, is another grievance cited by contesting parties and stakeholders. I stand here to defend my people’s commitment, what they did on the 23rd of August made history. Your fellow brothers, sisters and children made a huge sacrifice, they voted for change. The people of Zimbabwe won, they braved the harsh weather conditions, travelled from outside and used their resources in the spirit of Ubuntu to be the change they wanted to see. I promise you all that their efforts were not in vain. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MBOHWA: Thank you, Mr. President, for allowing me to add my voice to the report that was tabled by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs that relates to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.
I would like to thank the Hon. Minister for the report that he tabled. The report was full of challenges that ZEC is facing, which requires the Government’s intervention. ZEC is just like any other company or organisation who are facing challenges in getting tools of the trade to enable them to carry out their work properly which was caused by the illegal imposition of sanctions. I would also like to say that because of the challenges that we have, we now say that ZEC did not perform 100%, yet it had its challenges and limitations which were caused by inadequacies of funds.
Mr. President, I would like, at this moment, to thank ZEC as a Commission for being able to carry out an election of high standards despite challenges. ZEC delivered an election where no one contested the outcome. It is important to note that after an election, no one will litigate against you because they would have lost. There was peace and tranquility in the country after the elections, people accepted the outcome. It is unheard of, that once there is a contest, the one who loses will always say grapes are sour. Even in football, that is found, it hurts a lot of people that after the election, there was peace and tranquility like people were at a church conference. People wanted war to erupt and the burning of villages, but this did not happen. This is indicative of an election that was well done, everything was as cool as ice.
ZEC started with the delimitation process; I was among those who were very vocal in our communal areas when certain wards were beyond the mountains and became part of another constituency. I was then asked a question when ZEC was doing the delimitation process, it was conducted in the presence of chiefs and there were village heads and also Senators were representing the Government. So why did you not solve your problems there and then? When the delimitation exercise took place, the majority did not take a keen interest, we were bystanders. No one contested until the report was tabled in this august House. We were supposed to have nipped the problem in the bud, this is the problem of the people’s representatives and we can never fault ZEC on that one.
Going forward, I will come to the issue of the preparations for the elections. It started with people who were issuing out the certificates and the registration exercise for voters and those who wanted to transfer from one constituency to the next. We were also given a chance to correct any anomalies, no place was left behind in doing its preparations and ZEC did very well.
Furthermore, we are grateful that they sent people who conducted voter education. I would like to thank the civil servants who went door to door urging people to register to vote so that they could exercise their right to vote. ZEC made proper preparations.
I will now deal with the issue of nomination courts. There was sufficient time, but others did not have money because 1000 USD was required. It was difficult to come up with such a huge amount of money. Once you want to become a people’s representative, you should also use your resources that you are capable of representing them. If you want to be a president, you should also prove that by using your resources.
I support ZEC 100% for the fees that they set for the nomination of a candidate. ZEC extended the time because people were having problems. People spent the whole night trying to register, with those who had no money trying to raise the money. No one was turned away, but those that came after the deadline; Zimbabwean law then said they were able to stand and that they should be allowed to contest, that is how good the courts are.
I would want to go back to the issue of the delimitation exercise. That exercise was a huge challenge and ZEC did very well. If you go to the rural areas and they have farms, the distance that would have been covered would have been equal to three towns. If you were to equate them, the people are a scattered population and as a result, they would cover a lot of distance, which is why ZEC ended up coming up with areas where they would join peripheries in rural areas, hence the reason why there was plus or minus 25%. Just like in Budiriro, 36 000 will be gathered within a very short distance.
The Constituency Development Funds that the rural Member of Parliament gets is equivalent to the one that is in the urban area. I applaud ZEC for doing their best in trying to ensure that the issue of the numbers between rural and urban constituencies was attended to and that was not within the 20% plus and 25% minus.
I would like to commend ZEC for the manner in which they ran the elections. When a football match is being played between two opposing teams, when you go for half time, you are given tactics. One should concentrate on their team and not what the other team is doing. ZEC has got nothing to do with the teams that were contesting in a football match. Political parties were given equal chances to play. There was no party that was not given an equal opportunity as the agents representing each party were there in the polling station and no one was sent out. All parties were present in the counting of votes and all parties participated equally until the ballot boxes reached the Command Centre. I would like to commend ZEC for a job well done and they did that at a higher standard.
What I am thinking is that the Government should give ZEC sufficient funding in order to enable them to print ballot papers timeously. They must have sufficient motor vehicles and fuel in order to curtail such activities. Such challenges occurred in both rural and urban centres, but no constituency was discriminated against. ZEC attended to constituencies that failed to get voters’ roll in time and I want to commend them for that. The election was run over for two days because of these challenges. The hours for voting were extended to ensure that everyone had a chance to vote. I thank you for the time that you have given me. I feel very proud about the work that ZEC did. ZEC is one electoral board that does its work well, it was done in peace and was uncontested.
+HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: Thank you President of the Senate. I want to add my voice on the ZEC report that has been presented or tabled in this Senate. I want to first indicate that we had pre-election that is done before the actual voting, which is preparation for the voting process. Mr. President Sir, I recognise that in our pre-election process, there are some issues that we are saying were not done properly. Firstly, people were not given their right to say their views. I am witness to that because I was denied an opportunity to exercise my right.
Secondly, Mr. President Sir, ZEC came with the delimitation process, or rather introduced the delimitation process. I will give an example of my constituency where I come from. My constituency is made up of three constituencies, which are Gwanda South and what we used to call Matopo South and cross the boundary to what is called Likweporo in Kalanga. My councillor also visited Matopo Rural District Council, they have one Member of Parliament who represents them. As Members from that constituency, we feel it was not right, how can you combine three constituencies to form one constituency?
We feel it is not a proper process as I speak on behalf of the voters. Before the voting day, the voters’ roll was not delivered in time. You also realise that in our constituencies where we come from, the voters’ roll was sent to us through our mobile phones, but most of the councillors failed to open the document. We also found deceased members also appearing in the voters’ roll whilst those who are still alive failed to find their names in the voters’ roll.
Some people were moved to other wards and it was very far from where they were previously allocated to be their place of voting. Members from our constituency were not allowed to open any restaurants. ZBC was supposed to cover everyone from the opposition party, we were not covered, which is an indicator that the election was not free and fair. The fourth thing is that even the nomination fee was very high. People are saying when you want to contest as a Member of Parliament, you are supposed to be rich. It is not good; we cannot say all our Members of Parliament are supposed to be rich so that they will be able to afford the nomination fee. I propose that they must revise the figure.
Now talking about the voting day, I am disheartened, some people have said that ballot papers were delivered very late, for example in Bulawayo, the councillors had already left when the ballot papers were delivered. Another problem is that in the ballot papers, there was a mistake on the names of the party. It is not the first time for Zimbabwe to hold elections, hence there is no need to have such mistakes which are so glaring.
In the rural areas, there were too many assisted voters even for someone who is not visually impaired, they were given someone to assist them with their voting. When we say your vote is your secret and when you are then being assisted, that removes the part of the secrecy. Europe and SADC observers are saying that the voting was not fair. In some days, voting was extended into late hours of the night. Another thing that was a problem Mr. President, FAZ was a very troublesome organisation during the voting process. FAZ was stationed outside the voting places with a logo for our ruling party and they were instructing all the voters to say after voting, you should pass through their sheds.
Now, I will talk about the post-election period Mr. President Sir. Most of our polling agents were being called to come and sign again which we think is intimidation and it is not a fair practice. Also, there was much harassment. After the post-election period, some people were taken, for example Wumbirai Hombe who was taken and injected some chemicals. We therefore say that ZEC failed to carry out the election process, hence the need to have an independent body. For example, you realise that most of the ZEC Commissioners are daughters or sons of certain politicians.
I therefore, urge that as an august House, we should have a relook and check on the reasons why we are failing to have free and fair elections. ZEC should improve on the way they conduct elections. I thank you.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Thank you Hon. Sen. Mlotshwa. Unfortunately, I did not hear what you were saying and it is not your fault. The fault is with the administration of Parliament. So I am directing that this problem of interpretation be fixed today because I am sure I am not the only one who did not hear what you were saying. Similarly, there could be some people who do not understand Shona. So we need translation into all languages which are being used in this Chamber – [AN HON. MEMBER: Inaudible interjection.] -What did you say? You have got to be mature. This is the Senate. It is not a place for jokes and heckling. When the Presiding Officer is talking, you must listen carefully.
*HON. SEN. SIPANI-HUNGWE: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to add a few words as regards the report that was tabled by the Minster of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on ZEC.
I would like to thank ZEC for a job well done. Furthermore, I would like this august House to know that ZEC Commissioners are elected by Parliament and not by a political party. I would also want to put it on record that according to the delimitation exercise in this country, we have 210 constituencies. If you want the number of constituencies to be increased again, it is Parliament that gives ZEC the nod to increase the constituencies.
ZEC did its delimitation to the best of its ability because we are reproducing and we are giving birth to children in this country. I have my children. My children will produce their own children. ZEC was not allowed the leeway to do as they please. It did its delimitation well. That there were problems here and there is not any of ZEC’s problem. In Harare, the delimitation exercise is still the same. There are many of us in Harare that we ended up having an additional constituency. We used to have 29 constituencies, but we now have 30. So there is no way that you can fault ZEC, all those workers are experts.
I will not belabour or point on issues that have already been put on record. On the day of voting, I observed people voting. This is the only election that has ever been very peaceful. We know that at times we used to fight as political parties, but in our political party, we were told to turn the other cheek if one assaults you. Our leader was on record as saying he would not want any violence at all because after elections, as brothers and sisters, we need to still relate to each other.
We are in this august House. When we leave this august House, we talk to each other and even here we give each other water. An election is just a process to choose a candidate whom the Zimbabwean people like and the Zimbabwean people expressed their vote. It chose His Excellency President Cde Mnangagwa as the President. He came here, we also came for the State of the Nation Address and we all follow what he would have said. We may have challenges here and there, but Hon. President of Senate, the elections were very peaceful. I had never seen that.
I am a person who would want to flex my muscles and that if anyone were to provoke me, I would hit them, but I was told if I were to do that, I would be incarcerated. Let us thank other people’s children when they have done a magnificent job. We should not oppose just for the sake of it. We must appreciate the good work that has been done and accept that this is the election result that came out and after five years we listen, we go back to choose another leader.
The elections are done once every five years. As political parties, let us go and market our political party to the people. What hurts us most is that people are just going to one by-election after another, wasting the tax payers’ money which is supposed to have been put to other good use. We are saying well done ZEC. Keep it up because you did a splendid job.
As I said, other issues have already been touched on. Hon. Sen. Mbohwa gave a much more detailed explanation. I will not belabour the point. Thank you, Mr. President Sir.
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MASHONALAND EAST PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI): I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2024.
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE
PARLIAMENTARY DRESS CODE
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: I have an announcement to make in relation to dressing. We all know Hon. Senators, that dressing in this Chamber is supposed to be formal. We have noticed for a very long time that the male Senators in this Chamber, some of them are now dressing casually in the name of safari suit. So if you are going to dress with an open top, it must be a suit, like a safari suit. I am sorry to use you as an example, Hon. Sen. Moyo, but what you are putting on right now is not formal and it is not admissible in this Chamber. So take note of that. You must dress formally. A suit or jacket and tie or a safari suit. If you want to wear a safari suit do so, but it must be a suit. Thank you.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION FOR THE YEAR 2022
Third Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the report of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission for the year 2022.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MASHONALAND EAST PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI): I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2024.
MOTION
PROGRAMMES TO CURB DRUG AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE BY YOUTHS
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on drugs and substance abuse by youths.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. NCUBE: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to add my voice on this important motion which was raised by Hon. Alice Dube on drug and substance abuse. Drug and substance abuse is a problem, not only to individuals, but to the nation at large. Substance abuse affects the social and economic well-being of a country. More importantly, it affects our healthcare system. We know that because of substance abuse, crime rate goes up, teen pregnancies are prevalent, school drop-outs also increase. We have seen that young children of school going age in places like Bulawayo, have been gathering in some affluent suburb houses, conducting what are called vuzu parties. In those vuzu parties, alcohol flows freely and there is also free sex for the young boys and girls there.
Children who are 13 to 18 years old; that indicates that the family fabric has actually raptured. It has fallen apart and the important places or the important areas we have got to look at to interrogate, particularly when it comes to substance abuse are schools and homes. Those are the reservoirs, the major sources which are exploited by drug barons. At the end of the day, we also have to interrogate the main causes of drug and substance abuse. Like I have indicated, some of the causes might be social, biological, psychological and environmental.
I will talk later about strategies of dealing with drug and substance abuse, but what are the causes? Why is drug abuse so prevalent in Zimbabwe of late? I understand the people who are inclined, may be mental or because of their genetical composition. The chemistry of their brain tends to lean towards drug and substance abuse, that will be a defect within a person. There are also psychological factors like stress. We have even seen it in some cases where people abuse alcohol because they are under stress, wafirwa. Lack of parenting at home, a person who has also been abused or a young boy who has been sodomised, they also drift towards drug abuse. There should be a coping mechanism to deal with that. Those are psychological factors.
There are also environmental factors which are physical factors’ exposure. Most of us who went to boarding schools, if you go to a boarding school, particularly a boys’ boarding school, sometimes you join a certain group which exposes you to certain things. You take up drinking and you take up smoking and indeed, you take up smoking marijuana due to peer pressure, depending on where you are. Those are environmental factors. How do we tackle drug abuse? That has got to be done in a multi-faceted way because it has got different levels.
The mover of the motion made some suggestions in terms of strong policing like putting people in jail. That is an option as well as availing rehabilitation centres, education programmes and community support is also required. Most importantly, I think where we are, every school must identify, even the Ministry of Education, must appoint teachers, specifically to deal with psychological issues which are related to drug and substance abuse within schools, not only secondary schools, but even universities. That should be taken up.
The Government should also do its part. The unknown barons or peddlers of drugs are arrested today and released tomorrow, yet they are killing the young generation. Let us have strong laws to deal with those. Yesterday I saw a video clip of a white lady at O. R. Tambo Airport in South Africa. She took some drugs and took off all her clothes. I did not see much I must say, but you lose your mental faculties. Churches should also have strong programmes which lean towards prevention and education so that we can nip this cancer in the bud. It is now a cancer in the society of Zimbabwe. I thank Hon. Dube for moving this important motion. Hopefully, strong resolutions will come out and we can deal with it thoroughly once and for all.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE (HON. SEN. KAMBIZI): Audio system has been attended to and interpretation is now possible. So, Hon. Members may now use the language of their choice. Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MASHONALAND EAST PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI): Thank you Mr. President. I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2024.
MOTION
GBV AWARENESS PROGRAMME TO PROMOTE POSITIVE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CHANGE
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the commemorations to mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MBOHWA: Thank you Mr. President. In closing debate on this motion, allow me to acknowledge and appreciate all Hon. Senators who debated the motion and put their input. Their contribution to this motion is invaluable.
Let me also acknowledge the response by the Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development, Hon. Sen. Mutsvangwa. Her unwavering support for this motion is greatly appreciated. Indeed, the debate before this august House pointed to the urgent need to have accessible and survivor-centred support services for those affected by GBV and for the Government to prioritise resources to eliminate GBV in totality. As the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus, we look forward to the implementation of some of the proposals raised by the Hon. Minister in her response, especially the establishment of safe houses in every administrative district.
Let me conclude by acknowledging the support rendered to the Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus by the Parliament of Zimbabwe. The commemorations of the 16 days of Activism were brought to light by a Sensitisation Workshop of GBV which was held on 17 November, 2023 here at the Parliament Building in the Multi-Purpose Hall. The workshop aimed at equipping the Hon. Members with information to debate in Parliament and for them to also raise awareness in their constituencies.
The Zimbabwe Women Parliamentary Caucus also participated in at least four radio programmes at (i) Radio Zimbabwe (ii) Star FM (iii) National FM and (iv) Capitalk FM whereby the Hon. Members raised awareness of the negative effects of GBV. The programmes received a wide range of support and participants who attended acknowledged that the programme was insightful. This shows that as a nation, we are moving in a positive direction. Mr. President Sir, I therefore call upon this august House to adopt this motion. Thank you.
Motion that:
NOTING with appreciation that the 2023 commemorations to mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign will run under the theme “Invest to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls” and will commence from 25 November to 10 December 2023;
CONCERNED that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) is pervasive across economic, cultural, religion, age, sexual and ethnic orientation spaces;
NOTING that GBV manifests itself in various derivatives which mainly constitute harmful traditional practices, physical violence, psychological violence, economic violence, sexual violence and emotional abuse;
WORRIED that victims of GBV endure physically, psychologically, and socially resulting in both short and long-term effects which include mental health challenges, rampant drug abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and unwanted pregnancies;
ACKNOWLEDGING the various positive policy initiatives instituted by the Government of Zimbabwe in curbing the perpetration and perpetuation of GBV in the society;
NOW, THEREFORE, calls upon Government to;
- a) Initiate the enactment of laws that deter Gender-Based Violence perpetrators and provide for stiffer penalties;
- b) Embark on GBV awareness programmes to all districts of the country; and
- c) Initiate Gender-Based Violence programmes that promote positive social and cultural change as a way of eradicating this scourge, put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE DELEGATION TO THE 53RD PLENARY ASSEMBLY SESSION OF THE SADC-PARLIAMENTARY FORUM HELD IN MAURITIUS
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Delegation to the 53rd Plenary Assembly of the SADC Parliamentary Forum.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MBOHWA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2024.
MOTION
PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH: DEBATE ON ADDRESS
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion in reply to the Presidential Speech.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MASHONALAND EAST PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI): I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2024.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MASHONALAND EAST PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI), the Senate adjourned at Thirteen Minutes to Four o’clock p.m.