CAB3 gets 216 votes, 29 more than two-thirds majority

The controversial Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 3) Bill (CAB3) has cleared a major hurdle after securing the constitutionally required two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, moving it a step closer to becoming law.

The Bill sailed through Parliament on Thursday after 216 legislators voted in favour of the proposed constitutional changes while 42 voted against.

Announcing the outcome, Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda said the Bill had met the threshold prescribed by the Constitution.

"The confirmed result of count therefore is that 216 Honourable Members have voted in favour and 42 have voted against the Bill," Mudenda said.

"The number of the affirmative vote is not less than two-thirds of the membership of the House, which is 187 out of the total membership of the House, which is 280 Members. I therefore declare the final votes in the House on the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment Bill Number 3 to have been in accordance with the provisions of Section 328(5) of the Constitution."

The Bill will now proceed to the Senate, where it must also secure a two-thirds majority before it can be submitted to President Emmerson Mnangagwa for assent.

Its passage follows weeks of heated debate in the National Assembly, with lawmakers sharply divided over provisions critics argue could fundamentally alter Zimbabwe's constitutional architecture.

Among the most contentious proposals are measures that would extend the terms of office of the President, Members of Parliament and local authorities beyond 2028, when their current mandates are due to expire.

Earlier proposals to abolish the Zimbabwe Gender Commission, permit traditional chiefs to participate in partisan politics and amend certain provisions relating to the defence forces were removed during the Committee Stage after attracting widespread criticism.

Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi described the vote as a historic milestone, revealing that a record 182 MPs participated in the debate, with 139 supporting the Bill either outright or with reservations.

"The Bill went through the National Assembly with an overwhelming two-thirds majority," Ziyambi said after the vote.

"What was exciting is that some members across the divide decided to support the substantive content of the Bill, not support opposition lines — which is what must happen in progressive democracies, where all members converge on national issues."

He added: "We believe that this is a historic moment for our country, a historic moment for this particular Parliament. It will go down in history as one Parliament that made significant changes to the constitutional democracy of this country."

According to Ziyambi, debate in the Senate is expected to begin next Tuesday, with the Second Reading of the Bill before senators proceed to debate, committee deliberations and a final vote.

"We are very confident because the Bill has been widely debated. The majority of honourable members are fully up to speed with the contents and substance. So we are confident that we are going to sail through in the Senate," he said.

The voting process saw legislators physically divide into opposing sides of the chamber, with parliamentary officials and MPs from both Zanu PF and the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) participating in the counting process before the final tally was announced.

While supporters argue the Bill addresses governance challenges and strengthens state institutions, critics maintain that it weakens democratic accountability, concentrates power and undermines constitutional safeguards designed to limit executive authority.

With the National Assembly hurdle now cleared, attention shifts to the Senate, where the Bill's supporters are expected to seek another decisive victory before it is sent to Mnangagwa for signature into law.