Shame, bloodletting: Zimbabwe parliament adjourns the session until election eve

HARARE – Many sitting MPs in Zimbabwe’s current parliament may have seen the last of the legislative house’s doors Thursday after the National Assembly and Senate both adjourned to August 22, 2023, a day before the country’s general elections.

Zimbabwe goes to polls on August 23.

The announcement of adjournment was announced by then acting speaker William Mtomba at the end of Thursday business of the house.

“I have got an announcement to make. Following the adjournment of the House to 22nd August, 2023, all Committee Business is accordingly suspended, effective 15th June, 2023,” he said.

Some of the sitting MPs have lost primary elections within their parties and are definite not to return to the house inside the next five years.

Zimbabwe’s ninth parliament since independence would be remembered for the bloodletting which saw dozens of opposition MPs recalled from the house by MDC-T leader Douglas Mwonzora after a bitter party fallout in 2020.

The recalls triggered multiple by-elections which saw some MPs initially elected on MDC Alliance tickets 2018 bouncing back under a new identity, as CCC.

The current parliament would also be remembered for failing to rein in an overbearing executive that detoured the house and muscled in some unpopular decisions which included purchase of fire tenders from Belarus outside tender and awarding of hefty bonuses on ministers and judges outside the budget.

The adjournment of parliament came as opposition lawmakers were still demanding that Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube comes and explain how he planned to remedy the continued erosion of civil servants’ wages within the current pricing disorder.

Norton legislator Temba Mliswa also demanded the summoning of Ncube to parliament to explain how he bestowed unbudgeted US$400,000 pay-outs to each of the country’s judges. ZimLive.com