Speaker
of
Parliament
Jacob
Mudenda
gazetted
the
bill
on
Monday,
16
February
2026,
formally
starting
a
90-day
public
consultation
process
that
will
culminate
in
a
vote
by
Members
of
Parliament
and
Senators.
The
bill
proposes
sweeping
changes
to
Zimbabwe’s
constitutional
architecture,
including
extending
presidential
and
parliamentary
terms
from
five
to
seven
years,
replacing
direct
presidential
elections
with
a
parliamentary
vote,
dissolving
the
Zimbabwe
Electoral
Commission
(ZEC),
and
restructuring
several
independent
commissions.
With
Zanu
PF
holding
a
two-thirds
majority
in
Parliament,
the
bill
may
pass
if
the
ruling
party
MPs
support
it.
When
the
CCC
was
established,
it
positioned
itself
as
a
staunch
defender
of
constitutionalism
and
electoral
reform.
However,
its
parliamentary
leadership
has
now
endorsed
the
proposed
amendments,
a
stance
observers
say
was
‘predictable,’
given
that
opposition
MPs
also
stand
to
benefit
from
a
two-year
extension
of
their
own
terms.
Sengezo
Tshabangu,
who
acts
as
Secretary-General
of
the
CCC
and
Leader
of
the
Opposition
in
Parliament,
said
the
party’s
position
is
“very
clear”
regarding
the
recently
gazetted
bill,
before
referring
questions
to
his
spokesperson.
In
an
interview
with
CITE,
Tshabangu’s
spokesperson,
Nqobizitha
Mlilo,
defended
the
proposed
reforms.
On
the
proposal
to
scrap
direct
presidential
elections
and
instead
allow
Parliament
to
elect
the
President,
Mlilo
said:
“In
principle,
we
agree
with
the
changes.
The
election
of
the
President
through
Parliament
strengthens
Parliament,
and
by
implication,
citizens’
oversight
over
the
conduct
of
the
executive.”
Under
the
current
Zimbabwean
electoral
framework,
the
President
derives
a
direct
mandate
from
the
electorate
and
critics
have
argued
that
shifting
this
power
to
legislators,
many
elected
through
party
lists
and
subject
to
party
discipline,
could
further
centralise
executive
influence.
Mlilo
dismissed
fears
that
extending
presidential
and
parliamentary
terms
from
five
to
seven
years
would
trigger
a
constitutional
crisis,
even
though
the
amendments
would
apply
immediately
to
current
office
holders.
“There
is
no
constitutional
crisis.
The
changes
will
and
should
be
done
in
strict
compliance
with
the
Constitution,”
he
said.
When
asked
whether
the
CCC
would
insist
that
the
term
extension
apply
only
to
future
office
holders,
Mlilo
was
unequivocal.
“In
principle,
we
have
no
problem
with
the
application
of
the
changes
immediately,”
he
said.
That
position
places
the
CCC
parliamentary
leadership
at
odds
with
a
significant
segment
of
the
public,
many
of
whom
argue
that
extending
the
terms
of
sitting
leaders
amounts
to
moving
the
goalposts
mid-game,
as
the
reforms
appear
designed
to
benefit
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa,
whose
current
term
is
due
to
expire
in
2028.
The
amendment
bill
also
proposes
dissolving
the
Zimbabwe
Electoral
Commission
and
replacing
it
with
a
new
Zimbabwe
Electoral
Delimitation
Commission,
while
transferring
voter
registration
functions
back
to
the
Registrar-General’s
Office.
Mlilo
described
the
changes
as
long-overdue
reforms.
“The
changes
are
necessary
to
make
sure
that
the
credibility
of
the
election
is
secured.
ZEC
has
had
legitimacy
issues.
These
changes
are
the
necessary
electoral
reforms
we
have
been
calling
for,”
he
said.
However,
ZEC
has
often
been
criticised
by
opposition
parties,
including
the
CCC,
for
alleged
bias.
The
transfer
of
voter
registration
powers
to
the
Registrar-General,
a
role
historically
viewed
with
suspicion
by
opposition
actors,
departs
from
the
decentralised
model
introduced
in
the
2013
Constitution.
Further
controversy
surrounds
the
proposed
expansion
of
the
Senate
from
80
to
90
members,
including
10
additional
presidential
appointees.
Rather
than
opposing
the
move,
Mlilo
suggested
expanding
it
further.
“There
may
be
a
need
to
look
at
the
composition
of
the
Senate.
We
think
there
should
be
20
additional
senators,”
he
said.
“We
need
to
increase
the
pool
from
which
competent
and
talented
people
may
be
appointed
for
important
positions
by
the
President.
There
should
be
women
and
young
people
included.”
The
bill
also
seeks
to
abolish
the
Zimbabwe
Gender
Commission
and
the
National
Peace
and
Reconciliation
Commission,
transferring
their
functions
to
the
Zimbabwe
Human
Rights
Commission
(ZHRC).
Mlilo
argued
this
was
justified
due
to
duplication
of
roles
and
suggested
consolidation
could
improve
efficiency.
However,
he
did
not
directly
answer
follow-up
questions
on
whether
these
functions
would
be
adequately
protected
under
the
ZHRC,
or
what
the
move
signals
about
the
government’s
commitment
to
gender
equality
and
post-conflict
healing.
Mlilo
framed
the
amendments
within
a
broader
call
for
national
unity.
“It
is
important
that
these
proposed
changes
should
be
taken
to
the
people.
The
country’s
lasting
stability
is
important.
We
think
the
solution
to
our
national
challenges
is
the
establishment
of
a
Government
of
National
Consensus,”
he
said.
“Its
talk
should
be
to
unite
our
people,
create
economic
and
political
stability.
There
should
be
generational
transition.
The
old
should
prepare
the
young
to
govern.”
Mlilo
did
not
respond
to
questions
on
how
a
president
elected
solely
by
MPs
would
be
more
accountable
to
an
ordinary
voter
in
remote
constituencies,
or
whether
they
believe
the
current
MPs
and
the
President
elected
under
a
five-year
mandate
are
entitled
to
extend
their
stay
to
seven
years.
Meanwhile,
resistance
to
the
bill
is
mounting
in
other
quarters
with
six
liberation
war
veterans,
Reuben
Zulu,
Godfrey
Gurira,
Shoorai
Nyamangodo,
Joseph
Chinyangare,
Digmore
Knowledge
Ndiya
and
Joseph
Chinguwa,
filing
an
urgent
application
at
the
Constitutional
Court
on
Monday
seeking
to
block
President
Mnangagwa
from
advancing
the
bill.
Prepared
by
constitutional
law
expert
Professor
Lovemore
Madhuku,
the
application
challenges
Mnangagwa’s
participation
in
Cabinet
deliberations
on
the
amendments,
arguing
that
he
stands
to
benefit
personally
from
the
proposed
term
extension.
The
applicants
want
Cabinet
discussions
on
the
bill
declared
null
and
void
and
seek
to
bar
the
President
from
further
advancing
it.