Charles Mabhena
As if a jack of all trades, President Robert Mugabe has mastered the twisting of events in advancing his selfish agendas, and seems to be getting better in the trick with age like wine.
First it was Jealous Mawarire purported to have allegedly successfully sued the President to push for early polls in 2013.
In 2013 the state media went on rampage portraying that the President as a down to earth leader, who can be challenged by ordinary citizens and subject himself to the rule of law.
Coincidentally, the early polls were exactly what Mugabe wanted but he used Mawarire so that it appears as if he was forced by the court challenge to push for the polls, when in fact it was his plan.
To add a feather to his billed reputation of being a calculative manipulator, he returns with another shocker, this time on the appointment of the new Chief Justice of Zimbabwe.
In order to cover his track, he uses a University of Zimbabwe law student to challenge the legality of the public interviews in direct contravention with the national Constitution, and proposes for its amendment to give Mugabe the power to pick a CJ of his own liking.
This again portrayed Mugabe as a down to earth leader who can be challenged by an ordinary citizen. It latter came out that the move was an act of manipulation again as shown by the fact that while the Justice Service Commission (JSC) was busy conducting the public interviews in accordance with the Supreme law, Mugabe was already implementing the student’s proposed Constitutional amendment, to give him power to appoint a CJ of his choice.
This follows after Justice Charles Hungwe who knew about Mugabe’s willingness to amend the Constitution, had ruled that the interviews be stopped, which he got slams from various lawyers who quizzed the basis for his judgment.
Analysts have slammed the move saying in the normal sense an intention to change the Constitution should not invalidate the current Supreme law. Some claim that only in Zimbabwe is where a judge gives priority to a memorandum and a draft Bill ahead of the Constitution.
Even Mugabe’s trouble son, Jonathan Moyo could not be left from the debate he as he added his voice describing the move ruling that overrode the Supreme law, driven by the Justice Minister’s intention to amend a provision as scandalous.
“A court cannot rely on an unsigned memo and draft Bill to stop a constitutional body from performing its constitutional duty. Scandalous!” he slammed.
The judge was being chided by people who did not know Mugabe’s plan, until now they have now seen it for themselves; the basis of his ruling was from the highest office in the land.
Some have called Romeo Zibani, the law student a ZANU PF proxy just like Mawire who were used by Mugabe so that he can advance his agenda. A law expert Alex Magaisa queried; “Why the opposition does not have its own proxies remains the greatest wonders of our politics!”
