The legal battles surrounding the recall of elected officials dismissed from office last year are still pending in the courts and have yet to be finalised, acting leader of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), Professor Welshman Ncube, has said.
Pending the finalisation of the recall case, the acting CCC leader stated it is inappropriate for anyone to claim that the CCC accepts Sengezo Tshabangu’s authority to conduct future recalls, as the courts are yet to make a decision.
Tshabangu, identifying himself as the CCC interim secretary general, recalled elected Members of Parliament and councillors shortly after the August 2023 elections, informing Parliament that they no longer belonged to the CCC. This prompted the recalled members to challenge Tshabangu’s legal standing in court, claiming he was not even a member of the opposition party.
Responding to claims that the CCC has accepted Tshabangu’s authority to recall officials, Prof. Ncube said such assertions were incorrect as the legal battle over the recalls is still ongoing in court.
He explained that the applicants who were recalled and filed the main case against Tshabangu did so by way of summons, which takes a long time to conclude.
“The cases which went to court over recalls are still in court, by the way. It is incorrect to say anyone has accepted or not accepted (that Tshabangu has the power to recall) because the cases are pending,” said the acting CCC leader.
“Those who were recalled instituted the main case by way of summons, and when you start a case by way of summons, it takes a long time to snake its way through the judicial process. But pending the determination of that case, Tshabangu is interdicted from recalling anyone.”
The acting CCC leader highlighted that pending the determination of that recall case, Tshabangu or any other person is interdicted from further recalling anyone by the order of High Court Judge Justice Tawanda Chitapi.
“As we speak, he (Tshabangu) is interdicted because the main case as to whether or not people were properly recalled, whether or not Senator Tshabangu had the lawful authority to recall people is still pending in court,” Prof. Ncube said.
The acting CCC leader emphasised that “as things stand right now, Tshabangu cannot recall anyone” because he has no lawful authority to do so.
“The Speaker (Jacob Mudenda) is interdicted from accepting any recall of any person by order of Chitapi J,” Prof. Ncube said.
“It is incorrect to say that the power of recall has been accepted. It has not been; it is still pending in court and will be determined one way or the other by the courts.”
Nonetheless, after seizing control of the CCC, Tshabangu named himself senator in February of this year when vacancies opened as a result of his recalls in Parliament, and he was recently confirmed as the leader of the opposition in the august house.
