News / National
Mutumwa Mawere denies filing presidential papers
29 Jun 2013 at 06:55hrs | Views
Business mogul Mutumwa Mawere, who collected his documents on Thursday, denied reports stating he had filed papers in the nomination court on Friday to stand as a candidate in forthcoming elections.
Mawere finally acquired new identification documents from the registrar general's office and has now registered to vote, after winning a landmark case on dual citizenship in the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) on Wednesday.
He told SW Radio Africa that some people wanted to nominate him but he had to be a registered voter first and "that was only done this afternoon so there was no way that would be possible."
Mawere said his rights were violated, as in terms of the constitution he was supposed to have been given the same rights as any other Zimbabwean to participate in the electoral process when the new charter was adopted on 22nd May - even if it meant having the same time allocated for voter registration.
He added that constitutionalism has not dawned on Zimbabwe: "Until yesterday I was classified as an alien today I am classified as a Zimbabwean but there are many other people who are either resident aliens or non-resident aliens. So if you want to have an inclusive process then it must be fair and equitable to all.
"Even when I went to the registrar general's office they asked me for a copy of the court order, but the constitution says you do not need a court order to be entitled to the rights entrenched in the constitution. But they could not process any of my papers without evidence of a court order which means if somebody goes to the RG's office they may not receive the same treatment that I received."
A South African by naturalization, Mawere had travelled to Zimbabwe earlier this month to apply for his ID and a passport, so that he could register to vote in the forthcoming polls. But Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede told him that he would have to renounce his South African citizenship first.
He appealed the matter in the ConCourt, resulting in a judgment that said dual citizenship is permissible under the new constitution. This is a ruling that has widespread implications for Zimbabweans living in the Diaspora.
Mawere finally acquired new identification documents from the registrar general's office and has now registered to vote, after winning a landmark case on dual citizenship in the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) on Wednesday.
He told SW Radio Africa that some people wanted to nominate him but he had to be a registered voter first and "that was only done this afternoon so there was no way that would be possible."
Mawere said his rights were violated, as in terms of the constitution he was supposed to have been given the same rights as any other Zimbabwean to participate in the electoral process when the new charter was adopted on 22nd May - even if it meant having the same time allocated for voter registration.
He added that constitutionalism has not dawned on Zimbabwe: "Until yesterday I was classified as an alien today I am classified as a Zimbabwean but there are many other people who are either resident aliens or non-resident aliens. So if you want to have an inclusive process then it must be fair and equitable to all.
"Even when I went to the registrar general's office they asked me for a copy of the court order, but the constitution says you do not need a court order to be entitled to the rights entrenched in the constitution. But they could not process any of my papers without evidence of a court order which means if somebody goes to the RG's office they may not receive the same treatment that I received."
A South African by naturalization, Mawere had travelled to Zimbabwe earlier this month to apply for his ID and a passport, so that he could register to vote in the forthcoming polls. But Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede told him that he would have to renounce his South African citizenship first.
He appealed the matter in the ConCourt, resulting in a judgment that said dual citizenship is permissible under the new constitution. This is a ruling that has widespread implications for Zimbabweans living in the Diaspora.
Source - sw radio
