HARARE — A contentious draft Constitutional Amendment Bill (No. 3) that could extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s rule beyond the constitutionally mandated 2028 limit is expected to be gazetted before Christmas, according to a senior cabinet minister who spoke to The Zimbabwe Mail on condition of anonymity.
The proposed amendment—central to ZANU PF’s plan to push Mnangagwa’s tenure to 2030—has been under preparation by legal experts in the Attorney-General’s Office and the Ministry of Justice. The minister said the drafting stage is now complete and the bill is awaiting final cabinet approval before being transmitted to Parliament for gazetting.
“The Constitutional Amendment Bill will be gazetted soon, perhaps before Christmas or during the festive season,” the minister said. “The drafting has been finalised, and once cabinet approves it, it will go to Parliament, which will then send it to government printers for publication.”
Under the legislative process, the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs—who also serves as Leader of Government Business in Parliament—will introduce the bill and oversee its progress through both houses. However, the actual publication in the Government Gazette is handled by the Clerk of Parliament.
Constitutional Amendment Bills are subject to strict procedures. In line with Section 328(3) of the Constitution, the exact text of the amendment must be published in the Gazette at least 90 days before being brought before Parliament, allowing for public consultation. After this period, the bill will move through debates in the National Assembly and Senate. If both houses approve it with the required two-thirds majority, it will be sent to the President for assent and later gazetted as an Act.
The emerging controversy centres on whether the proposed extension of Mnangagwa’s time in office should trigger a referendum. Critics argue that altering the duration of presidential tenure amounts to tampering with constitutionally protected term-limit provisions.
Sections 91, 95 and 328 of the Constitution collectively govern presidential qualifications, term length and the protection of term limits. Section 91(2) bars anyone who has already served two terms from contesting again, while Section 95 sets the presidential term at five years. Crucially, Section 328(7) prohibits amendments to term limits that directly benefit an incumbent, and Section 328(9) requires both a two-thirds parliamentary majority and a national referendum if changes are made to term limits that affect the current officeholder.
Legal experts say interpretations vary. One school of thought argues that altering the length of the presidential term—without explicitly changing the two-term limit—still affects the substance of term limits and must therefore be subjected to a referendum. Another view insists that modifying the duration of a term is distinct from extending term limits and may not require a public vote.
ZANU PF maintains that the proposed amendment deals only with the duration of the presidential term and not with term limits themselves, and therefore does not necessitate a referendum. However, opposition groups, civil society organisations and constitutional lawyers warn that any attempt to extend Mnangagwa’s tenure without a referendum would amount to a violation of the Constitution’s democratic safeguards.
The Bill, once gazetted, is expected to ignite intense national debate and could become one of the most consequential political disputes of the post-2013 constitutional era.
