Bulawayo North legislator, Minenhle Ntandoyenkosi Gumede, emerged as the city’s sole parliamentary voice against the contentious Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 (CAB3), breaking ranks with fellow opposition legislators whose support and abstentions helped the ruling Zanu PF party secure the two-thirds majority needed to pass the measure in the National Assembly.
Gumede was the only legislator among Bulawayo’s 12 constituency MPs and proportional representation representatives to vote against the Bill, saying her decision reflected the wishes of her constituents and her constitutional obligations.
“My conscience was clear from the day I was elected. I know my role and I have to say what I have been sent to voice out, so the vote comes from the sentiments from the majority within Bulawayo North,” she said.
The vote on Wednesday exposed deep fissures within the opposition after 35 Members of Parliament elected on the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) ticket joined Zanu PF in backing CAB3, enabling the governing party to overcome a shortfall in its own numbers.
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Zanu PF garnered 181 votes from its legislators in support of the Bill, six short of the 187 votes required to attain the constitutionally mandated two-thirds majority.
However, support from opposition MPs, including many who entered Parliament following recalls orchestrated by Sengezo Tshabangu, who declared himself the CCC interim secretary-general pushed the final tally to 216 votes in favour and 42 against, allowing the Bill to proceed to the Senate.
Political observers and civic groups argued that had opposition legislators voted as a bloc against the Bill, CAB3 would have failed to attain the constitutional threshold required for passage.
In Bulawayo, the vote exposed stark divisions among opposition legislators.
The 42 MPs who voted against CAB3 are in total:
Agency Gumbo – Hatcliffe
Brian James — Mutare Central
Brighton Mazhindu — St Mary’s Constituency
Caston Matewu — Marondera Central
Charlton Hwende — Kuwadzana East
Clifford Hlatywayo — Chipinge South
Corban Madzivanyika — Mbizo
Daniel Molokele — Hwange Central
Darlington Chigumbu — Budiriro South
Desire Nkala — Gwanda North
Donald Mavhudzi — Highfield
Edwin Mushoriwa — Dzivarasekwa
Ellen Shiriyedenga — Harare PR
Gift Mambipiri — Kadoma Central
Gladys Hlatywayo — Harare Province PR
Godfrey Sithole — Chitungwiza North
Goodrich Chimbaira — Zengeza East
Innocent Zvaipa — Zengeza West
Joana Mamombe — Harare West
John Kuka — Mkoba South
Johnson Matambo — Kuwadzana West
Judith Tobaiwa — Kwekwe Central
Leslie Mhangwa — Chinhoyi
Lovejoy Sibanda — Matobo North
Lovemore Jimu — Harare Central
Lynette Karenyi — Chikanga
Makumire Ropafadzo — Chiredzi
Martin Mureri — Masvingo Urban
Maureen Kademaunga — Sunningdale
Maxwell Mavhunga — Chitungwiza South
Mhetu Zivai — Epworth North
Minenhle Gumede — Bulawayo North
Miriam Matinenga — Manicaland PR
Mutsa Murombedzi — Mashonaland East PR
Patrick Sagandira — Makoni
Prosper Mutseyami — Dangamvura
Rewayi Nyamuronda — Hatfield
Richard Tsvangirai — Norton
Sethule Ndebele — Mat North
Shakespeare Hamauswa — Warren Park
Shine Gwangwava — Kariba Constituency
Wellington Chikombo — Glen Norah
There were other Zanu PF MPs who did not participate in the vote, such as Angeline Gata (Mutema-Musikavanhu), Jenfan Muswere ( Makoni West), Marian Chombo (Zvimba North), Sheillah Chikomo (Mwenezi East), Tatenda Mavetera (Chikomba West), and Joel Sithole (Chiredzi South).
Other MPs, including Rajesh Kumar Modi (Bulawayo South), Barbara Rwodzi (Chirumanzu), Tongai Mnangagwa (Hunyani) and Dingumuzi Phuti (Bulilima), were reported to be away on official ministerial duties.
Appointed MPs, among them retired Lieutenant General, Anselem Sanyatwe and Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, did not vote because Zimbabwe’s Constitution and parliamentary procedures prohibit non-constituency appointed legislators from participating in votes on constitutional amendment bills.
The outcome has drawn criticism from constitutional watchdogs, who argue that opposition support for CAB3 undermined Parliament’s oversight role.
The Zimbabwe Constitutional Movement (ZICOMO) praised legislators who opposed the amendment but expressed concern at the role some opposition MPs played.
“We commend the 42 Members who stood firm in defence of constitutionalism and democratic accountability. In a political environment where pressure, patronage, and inducements too often shape parliamentary outcomes, these legislators chose principle over expediency,” the organisation said, noting Thursday’s vote had exposed a “deepening constitutional crisis.”
“More troubling, however, is the role played by elements within the opposition.”
ZICOMO said the bloc aligned to Tshabangu entered Parliament through a process politically engineered, with the active involvement of Zanu PF and the Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Mudenda.
“Their support for this amendment reinforces concerns that this grouping no longer functions as an independent opposition but as a parliamentary adjunct of the ruling party,” said the organisation.
The organisation further argued that constitutional amendments affecting the architecture of the State should not be passed with the assistance of a “manufactured opposition.”
“The people of Zimbabwe did not elect Parliament to facilitate the concentration of power. They elected it to uphold, defend, and protect the Constitution,” ZICOMO said.
“The 42 Members who voted against the Bill understood this responsibility. Others, including Tshabangu-aligned MPs, chose political convenience over constitutional duty. History will judge that distinction.”
ZICOMO warned CAB3 appeared designed to serve the interests of a political elite intent on consolidating power rather than advancing the national interest.
“The Constitution was adopted to limit arbitrary authority, strengthen accountability and protect citizens from the excesses of unchecked power. Any attempt to weaken those safeguards represents a betrayal of both the spirit and the letter of the Constitution,” the organisation said.
With Bill 3 now set to be considered by the Senate, where debate is expected to start after its Second Reading next Tuesday, constitutional advocacy groups have appealed to senators to vote according to their conscience and constitutional obligations.
Advocacy groups argue the next stage of the legislative process presents another opportunity to halt changes that threaten Zimbabwe’s democratic governance and separation of powers.
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