Constitutional Amendment: Chamisa to be 'Eligible for Elections in 2033'

Harare - With a two thirds majority in the bag, Zanu-PF is reportedly contemplating using the majority to effect a constitutional amendment raising the minimum age requirement for presidential aspirants from 40 years to 55 years.

If passed, this move will be a big blow to MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa who lost to Zanu Pf candidate Emmerson Mnangagwa in a tightly contested election and he will only be eligible to stand for elections in 2033.

Chamisa who turned 40 this year, is currently contesting the presidential results at the constitutional court,claiming that he won the election and ZEC manipulated the results of the election in favor of his rival Mnangagwa.

President Mnangagwa's ZANU-PF swept most rural constituencies by large margins while the main opposition MDC Alliance won in urban centers.

Parliament of Zimbabwe

A supermajority or supra-majority or a qualified majority, is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for majority.

Related concepts regarding alternatives to the majority vote requirement include a majority of the entire membership and a majority of the fixed membership. A supermajority can also be specified based on the entire membership or fixed membership rather than on those present and voting.

Parliamentary procedure requires that any action of a deliberative assembly that may alter the rights of a minority has a supermajority requirement, such as a two-thirds vote. Changes to constitutions, especially those with entrenched clauses, commonly require supermajority support in a legislature.

A two-thirds vote, when unqualified, means two-thirds or more of the votes cast. This voting basis is equivalent to the number of votes in favor being at least twice the number of votes against. Abstentions and absences are excluded in calculating a two-thirds vote.

The two-thirds requirement can be qualified to include the entire membership of a body instead of only those present and voting, but such a requirement must be explicitly stated (such as "two-thirds of those members duly elected and sworn"). In this case, abstentions and absences count as votes against the proposal.

Meanwhile, president-elect Emmerson Mnangagwa has also challenged Chamisa on his vote-rigging claims at the Constitutional Court (ConCourt), setting the stage for what seems to be an epic legal battle.

Mnangagwa, in his founding affidavit submitted to the ConCourt courtesy of his 12-member legal team, trashed Chamisa’s application, saying it was not bona fide, but was a tactic meant to delay his inauguration as the duly-elected President and to also find an opportunity to make a political statement in court.

Source -- Tinzwei -- Constitutional Amendment: Chamisa to be 'Eligible for Elections in 2033'