The chief whip of the Movement for Democratic Change Innocent Gonese has finally complained about the way ZANU-PF is killing motions by opposition members that are perceived to be critical of the government or the ruling party.
All the ruling party legislators have to do is walk-out leaving no quorum in the House.
The House should have 70 Members of Parliament out of 270 to constitute a quorum but the MDC-T does not have that many members in Parliament.
ZANU-PF has so far killed three key motions by the MDC-T:
- The disappearance of activist Itai Dzamara;
- The appalling behaviour of Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko who went to a police station to unprocedurally release his boys; and
- the police brutality displayed during the recent demonstrations.
Gonese said his party was appalled, dismayed and disgusted by this anti-people behaviour as it was a well calculated move to frustrate and kill the motions.
“One does not need a degree in nuclear physics in order to figure out why they are behaving in this manner. They definitely have something to hide,” he said.
But the MDC-T is partly to blame because though it lost the 2013 elections dismally, it had 70 members and could have capitalised on the two other seats from the smaller MDC faction to make them 72.
But instead it expelled members who joined former secretary-general Tendai Biti when the party split and then refused to contest the by-elections calling for electoral reform.
While this might have been a principled stand, it is now costing the party dearly as it is now at the mercy of ZANU-PF which now has total control of what should be debated in the House.
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