Judgment No. CCZ 4/18 9
Case No. CCZ 3/18
“Under the Zimbabwean electoral system, a voter votes not only as a citizen of this
country but also to protect his or her rights and interests as a resident of the constituency
in which he or she is registered2.”
It should be noted that para 1 (1) is made ‘subject to’ para 1 (2). The import of this
prefix in my view is simply to restate the fact that the requirements for eligibility to vote as
outlined in para 1 (1) must take on board any additional residential requirements that may be
prescribed in terms of para 1 (2). The caution contained in para 1 (2) against these additional
requirements violating the political rights guaranteed in s 67, especially subs (3) thereof, is not
to be interpreted narrowly, since this subsection is made ‘subject to’ other provisions of the
Constitution that deal with voting rights.
The clearest suggestion as to what ‘constituency’ for purposes of voting in general
elections refers to, is given in s 160(1) of the Constitution. The section falls under the heading
‘DECLARATION OF ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES’, and the subtitle ‘Number of
constituencies and wards’. It reads as follows: “(1)
For the purpose of electing Members of Parliament, the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission must divide Zimbabwe into 210 constituencies.” (my emphasis)
It is not in dispute that Harmonised General Elections are held in order for the
electorate to vote among others, for Members of Parliament, a President and local Government
representatives of their choice. There can, in my view, therefore, be no doubt that the reference
to ‘constituency’ in para 1 (1) of the 4th Schedule relates to any one of the 210 constituencies
which ZEC is constitutionally mandated to divide Zimbabwe into.
2
. In that judgment, the Court dealt with a challenge to the restriction of postal voting to government officials
and the residency requirements in the Electoral Act, albeit under the old Constitution. The issues are however
the same as the ones in this case. The applicants have not challenged the correctness of this judgment nor
established that it was distinguishable.