[Bill-Watch] Bill Watch 10/2014 - 26th February [In Parliament This Week & New Media Fees Gazetted]

[Veritas Bill Watch]

BILL WATCH 10/2014
[26th February 2014]
Parliament Resumed Sitting on Tuesday 25th February
Late Insertion
As our planned distribution of this bulletin early on 25th February proved
impossible, Veritas has updated it to cover what happened when Parliament
reassembled briefly later in the day.  Both Houses met, but because
Parliament building was without water, they adjourned soon after 3 pm to
avoid health problems.  Before this enforced early closing¾
·        the presiding officers announced the appointment of Mrs Nomasonto
Sunga as the second Deputy Clerk of Parliament with effect from 1st March
·        in the Senate, Senators Mathuthu and Mahofa introduced their new
motion on the use of indigenous languages, particularly in schools [see also
under Senate, below]
·        in the National Assembly, Minister of Women’s Affairs, Gender and
Community Development Oppah Muchinguri joined in the debate on Hon Majome’s
motion on gender-based violence.  She said that speeches made during the
debate would help shape the Ministry’s policy, and stated her support for
proposals for a 30-year mandatory minimum sentence for rape and stiffer
sentences for other forms of gender-based violence.  
Coming up in Parliament for the Rest of This Week
National Assembly
Remaining Budget business
As the two Bills for the 2014 Budget have been passed, what remains to be
dealt with is last year’s unbudgeted spending.  This involves the approval
of supplementary estimates of expenditure for 2013, a Supplementary
Appropriation Bill and a Financial Adjustments Bill [soft copies available
from addresses at end of bulletin].  
Bills
Sovereign Wealth Fund of Zimbabwe Bill  The report of the Parliamentary
Legal Committee [PLC] on this Bill is due this week.  It is expected to be a
non-adverse report, clearing the way for the Minister of Finance’s Second
Reading speech explaining and justifying the Bill [soft copy available].  
The week could see the introduction of two Bills that were gazetted in
January or earlier this month:
·        Biological and Toxin Weapons Crimes Bill [soft copy available]
·        National Prosecuting Authority Bill [soft copy available]
If these Bills are introduced and given their First Readings, they will
immediately be referred to the Parliamentary Legal Committee.  Further
proceedings will then have to wait until the PLC has reported, which will be
in March or later, depending on the Parliamentary programme.  
Income Tax Bill  This Bill, a carry-over from the last Parliament, was
returned, unsigned, by the President for reconsideration of his reservations
on eight major points.  As a proper reconsideration of the Bill requires
that MPs be provided with a copy of the Bill as it was sent to the
President, that is, complete with the major amendments made during its
passage through Parliament.  This has not yet been done, so it is highly
unlikely that the National Assembly will get round to this item any time
soon.  In recognition of this fact the Bill is, in fact, item 23 on a
24-item Order Paper.  [Soft copy of final Bill not available from Veritas.]
Motions  There are many motions on the Order Paper.  Those near the top of
the list include:
Gender-based violence [GBV] – see above for what happened in 25th February’s
short sitting. 
Tripartite Negotiating Forum  This new motion calls for the reactivation of
this forum for Government, business and labour.
Appointment of Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission  This motion refers to
the deteriorating state of corporate governance in Zimbabwe and calls on the
Government to review laws on corruption and to appoint the Anti-Corruption
Commission, where all terms of office have expired, except that of the
chairperson.
Broadcasting of Parliamentary proceedings  This motion refers to the
sporadic and inadequate coverage of Parliament by the ZBC, and calls for a
dedicated TV and radio channels to broadcast Parliamentary proceedings in
all languages.
Question Time [Wednesday 26th February]  There are 59 questions on the Order
Paper for the hour-long Questions with Notice session, most of them deferred
from 5th February, but some of them much older than that.  Hon Gonese’s
question about the Presidential Scholarship Fund has gone unanswered by
Minister of State for Presidential Affairs Didymus Mutasa since 4th December
2013.  Several questions for Minister of Local Government, Public Works and
National Housing Ignatious Chombo focus on the need for information about
the remuneration of senior management in local authorities.  In a question
for Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Andrew Langa, Hon Cross raises the
financial situation of Zimbabwe Cricket, the loss of large sums of money,
the connections between senior Zimbabwe Cricket office-holders and its
bankers, and the non-payment for several months of the national cricket
team’s wages. 
Senate
Bills
Electoral Amendment Bill  The report of the PLC on this Bill is due this
week.  It is expected to be a non-adverse report, clearing the way for the
Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs’ Second Reading speech
explaining and justifying the Bill.  
Motions  Two new motions are listed on the Order Paper for early debate:
·        Use of indigenous languages – This motion by Senators Mathuthu and
Mahofa refers to the Education Act’s  provision for use of only English,
Shona and Ndebele in schools, and calls for the formulation of specific
policy initiatives on all indigenous languages with a view to their wider
use generally, and specifically in Zimbabwe’s education and training
systems.  [See beginning of bulletin for developments on 25th February.]
·        Agrarian reform – Senators Carter and Sibanda, referring to the
inability of farmers to access credit under the current land tenure system
of offer letters and non-transferable leases, call on the Government to
grant security of tenure to farmers.
Debate is also scheduled to continue on motions previously introduced on
environmental conservation, special needs education, carnage on the roads
and alignment of laws with the Constitution.
Question Time [Thursday 26th February]
12 written questions are listed.  Recent additions to the list include
questions on:
Female enrolment in technical colleges – a question seeking an explanation
of the policy of the Ministry of Higher & Tertiary Education, Science &
Technology Development on gender imbalance in these institutions.
School curricula and child abuse/gender-based violence – a question for the
Minister of Primary and Secondary Education asking whether the Ministry has
plans to incorporate these topics in school curricula. 
Government Gazette
Statutory Instruments [SIs]
New registration/accreditation fees for journalists and media houses
SI 40/2014, gazetted late on 21st February in a Government Gazette
Extraordinary, sets out a new schedule of fees for accreditation and
registration of journalists and media houses under the Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act [soft copies of SI and Act available].  The
new fees are stated to be with effect from 1st January 2014.  Most of them,
notably the fees for registration and accreditation of journalists, are less
than the previous fees for dating from 2011.  The SI was swiftly followed up
by the Zimbabwe Media Commission [ZMC] with a press statement telling
journalists and companies to get registered and accredited by 21st March,
and warning that a penalty fee will be levied on renewal applications
received after that date.  Many journalists had been waiting to apply or
re-apply since the beginning of the year, but had been turned away by ZMC
because the new fee structure was in the pipeline.  
Note: The SI is a legal nullity for at least two reasons: first, it is
stated to have been made by the Minister of Media, Information and
Broadcasting Services, although it should have been made by ZMC, because ZMC
took over the regulation-making function from the Minister in January 2008;
second, it lists “proposed fees” instead of “fees”.  These mistakes,
astonishingly, repeat what happened the last time round with SI 186/2010,
later “corrected” by SI 10/2011.  It is also unacceptable that fees that
should have been in place by 1st January were only gazetted six weeks later;
if this SI had provided for significant fee increases and if applicants
tendering the lower fees had been turned away until the increases had been
gazetted and could be imposed, the ZMC and the Minister would have had no
defence to a legal complaint.
Customs duty suspension  SI 41/2014 provides for suspension, for the whole
of 2014, of duty on specified motor vehicles imported by tourism operators.
Customs duty tourism rebate  SI 42/2014 amends a detail in the original SI
on this subject, SI 173/2013.
Customs duty rebates on traveller’s effects and construction project goods
SI 43/2014 corrects SI 169/2013 by making its effective date 1st January
2014. 
VAT  SI 44/2014 adjusts the zero rating of imported electricity.
General Notices [GNs]
Collection of listeners licence fees  GN 28/2014 of 21st February notifies
the appointment of the Zimbabwe National Road Authority [ZINARA] to collect
and transmit listeners’ licence fees to the Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Corporation.
 
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