Tempers flared at a public hearing on the statelessness of migrants convened by the Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs, Security, and War Veterans Affairs in Bulawayo, with participants alleging the chairperson was intimidating them.
The meeting, scheduled to start at 11 am at Selbourne Hotel, began an hour late due to the delayed arrival of the committee.
Participants expressed dissatisfaction with the conduct of the committee chairperson, Beitbridge East Member of Parliament Albert Nguluvhe.
Nguluvhe is the former director of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO).
Tensions rose when the first speaker, Mr Ncube, questioned why Parliamentarians needed Amnesty International to inform them about issues affecting their constituencies.
“According to Section 43 of the 2013 Constitution, any resident born in Zimbabwe to a parent from any SADC member country, such as Malawi or Mozambique, automatically becomes a Zimbabwean. However, according to the United Nations Human Rights Commission, there are 300,000 undocumented Zimbabweans, despite an instrument clearly stating that a migrant child born in Zimbabwe is supposed to be a Zimbabwean,” Ncube said.
Nguluvhe responded by saying that Ncube, as someone well-read, should be aware of the President’s statements on the issue.
“You heard the SONA when the President addressed Parliament. He talked about amending that act to align the sections you are referring to. If you had listened to the President, you would know that it’s in the pipeline and that this committee is going to deal with it,” he said.
Another speaker, Precious Bhebhe, discussed the challenges faced by grandparents left with undocumented children.
“Due to the current economic situation, most parents are out of the country, leaving children undocumented with their grandparents until they reach school age. These children often end up playing in the streets instead of attending school. I don’t know how that situation can be addressed because the majority of children without documents are in that situation,” said Bhebhe.
Nguluvhe responded that parents are responsible for securing documents for their children, frustrating residents who felt disregarded and intimidated. A frustrated resident, Mr Mkhwananzi, stood up without being recognised, asking Nguluvhe to tone down his attitude.
“Chair, you are a bit tough on the audience. You are going to make these people fail to give you what we want. If you are chairing a committee to hear our views, and people say your tone makes them uncomfortable, please tone it down,” he said.
Mkhwananzi added, “Let people express their views. We are a government that is supposed to solve issues. This hearing should help you understand people’s challenges so that laws can be crafted to make it easier for people to access documents. I cannot obtain a birth certificate for my grandchild; the law does not allow that. You know this, so why blame us?”
Nguluvhe reiterated that in Parliament, no one is allowed to speak without being recognised.
“I did not refuse to let you speak, but let us follow procedures,” he said.
Other MPs were seen trying to restrain Nguluvhe. Claudius Ndlovu requested that the chairman listen to people’s views without responding to their concerns.
“I would like to request that you don’t respond and just listen to our points. We have a problem with laws being put in place. We read about these in newspapers, but when we go to the registry office, we receive the opposite,” said Ndlovu.
Ward 17 Councillor Sikhululekile Moyo said the chairman was intimidating women.
“We won’t be able to speak freely. We thought you were here to listen to us. You arrived late, and we were waiting for you. You choose venues that are convenient for you as MPs, without consulting us. The issue of birth certificates and identity affects us women, and we are not able to speak in this environment. You are intimidating us,” she said.
Moyo added that residents had to rely on Amnesty International to get the committee’s attention.
“Our children don’t have birth certificates, and their parents don’t have identities. We wish they could be assisted. We gained independence in 1980 and drafted our new constitution in 2013, yet 10 years later, people still don’t have documents proving they are Zimbabwean. You say people without national IDs and birth certificates are a threat to the government, but you don’t consider the good they can do,” she said.
She highlighted the issue of statelessness in Matabeleland due to Gukurahundi.
“We want to end this challenge. Programs come and go, and during elections, the registry office opens, but they don’t solve the problem entirely as people have different challenges. We need a solution, like a waiver, so that everyone can obtain identity documents and birth certificates without many questions. We are residents, and those with challenges are known by the village heads, councillors, and MPs,” said Councillor Moyo.
