Prof Moyo Applies to Supreme Court for Speaker ouster
HARARE – Prof Jonathan Moyo has asked Zimbabwe’s Supreme Court to reverse the historic August 25, 2009 election of the mainstream MDC’s chairman, Lovemore Moyo, to the position of Speaker of House of Assembly.
Last week Prof Jonathan Moyo lodged papers in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court’s decision to dismiss his court challenge. The plot is reportedly being spearheaded by a number of so-called hawks within Zanu-PF. It is alleged they are conniving with the Tsholotsho North independent MP, with the ultimate objective of bringing the tenure of Moyo as Speaker of the 7th Parliament of Zimbabwe to a premature and inglorious end.
High Court judge Bharat Patel last month ruled that Moyo’s application lacked merit and failed to establish any justification for the nullification of the election of the Speaker.
In his application filed Friday to the Supreme Court, through his lawyer Terrence Hussein of Ranchod and company, Professor Moyo said Judge Patel erred in dismissing his application.
Prof Moyo’s lawyer has demanded that the Supreme Court immediately sets down a date to hear a court application in this
regard. Speaker Moyo’s lawyer, Chris Mhike of law firm Atherstone and Cook, says they are eagerly awaiting a date for the hearing.
The MDC chairman beat former parliamentarian Paul Themba-Nyathi, whose candidacy for the Speaker’s post was sponsored by his party, the breakaway faction of the MDC led by Arthur Mutambara and had the full backing of President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF.
Moyo’s Supreme Court appeal says: “However, during the election process there were several deviations from the procedure prescribed as appears from the papers and exhibits filed herein. In particular, some members folded their completed ballot papers outside the polling booth and several MDC-T members openly displayed their ballot papers to their colleagues.”
The legal challenge means the MDC’s control of Parliament stands doubtful in the face of the constitutional court challenge against the election of its national chairman which the applicants claim was in contravention of Article 6 of the Parliamentary Standing Orders.
“It is respectfully submitted that the Constitution of Zimbabwe and the Standing Orders were breached by the first respondent and that such a breach cannot be condoned by any Member of Parliament or Parliament itself and once the breach has been demonstrated as has been done, this Honourable Court has no option but to nullify the action in this case, the purported election of second respondent,” Moyo’s Supreme Court challenge says.
The Speaker has come out fighting, insisting that the doctrine of separation of powers outlawed the courts from interfering with parliamentary processes. Prof Moyo says the election of Speaker Moyo was “disorderly.” Moyo says in his papers Clerk of Parliament Austin Zvoma lost control of the vote, and “helplessly” threw his hands in the air in despair, “abdicating his duties of conducting the election.”
Prof Moyo says the lack of the Clerk’s supervision in the conduct of the poll breached Section 39 of the Constitution as read with Section 6 of the Standing Orders, which imposes the obligation of conducting the election of Speaker on the Clerk.
The MDC has issued a statement stating that the MPs’ vote for Moyo was a true reflection of the will of the people of Zimbabwe.
“The election of Hon Moyo as Speaker of Parliament remains a historic occasion, which cannot be reversed by losers, regardless of whatever machinations they can concoct to reverse the people’s will,” the MDC statement said.
But Prof Moyo insists that Speaker Moyo was elected through an undemocratic process and has called for a rescission of the election result. Moyo said in his court papers the vote ran against one of the fundamental tenets of democratic parliamentary practice.
He has insisted that the election of Lovemore Moyo should be set aside by the Supreme Court, ostensibly because it established an unacceptable standard of behaviour for Parliament.
Zimbabwe Reporter
Posted by Raymond Mhaka
on July 18, 2010. Filed under Politics.
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