Constitutional Amendments Will Benefit From Previous Consultations – Justice Minister

Minister of Justice Princess Kasune has said that the process of drafting amendments to the Republican Constitution will take on board recommendations from previous public consultations.

Speaking at a meeting with British High Commissioner Rebecca Terzeon, Ms Kasune said the process of drafting the proposed amendments “will take into consideration all other commissions’ reports that were done [so] as to minimise what could be an elaborate consultation process.”

The minister has previously confirmed that government is committed to gathering public feedback on the proposed constitutional changes, including via town hall meetings and discussions with traditional leaders. However, in Tuesday’s meeting she emphasised that “there is no need to start from ground, really, there’s a lot of good work that was already done.”

The proposed changes to the constitution are set to include provisions to create more parliamentary constituencies in rural districts, improving representation for rural communities and rebalancing CDF funding. They also include proposed measures to increase women and youth representation in the National Assembly by introducing quotas.

However, Minister Kasune has been clear that a bill containing these amendments has not yet been drafted.

“There is no draft bill yet. We are only working on provisions that will inform the draft bill,” she told ZNBC on Sunday night.

The Justice Minister also explained that the amendments will not affect limits on the President’s term in office or the 50%+1 threshold for elections.