his power to appoint Provincial Governors and chiefs. Under the Global Political Agreement (GPA) he can appoint an additional six Senators nominated by the MDC formations. Quite clearly this power violates the doctrine of separation of powers, which envisages an independent legislature. Under the new constitution all Senators (assuming there is a Senate) should be elected directly by the people or elected or appointed by interest groups who are not themselves part of the Executive. (b) Power to summon, adjourn or dissolve Parliament Under the present Constitution the President can summon, prorogue [i.e. stop Parliament sitting until he re-summons it], and dissolve Parliament [in which case there has to be a new election] at any time, though under the GPA he must now get the Prime Minister’s consent before dissolving Parliament. The only limit which the Constitution places on these powers is to require Parliament to sit at least once every six months. Careful consideration should be given to abolishing or severely restricting this power in the new Constitution. It limits Parliament’s independence, and has a chilling effect on freedom of debate because members may fear that if they discuss sensitive matters the Executive will respond by proroguing or dissolving Parliament. In many countries, for example the United States and South Africa, the legislature is elected for a fixed term, and during its term can decide when and how often it sits. Even the United Kingdom, where our President’s current power originates, is reconsidering the right of the Executive to dissolve Parliament before its term has expired. Zimbabwe should reconsider it too. 2. Legislative power, namely the power to enact legislation In Zimbabwe, the President and his Ministers have extensive legislative powers conferred on them by various Acts of Parliament. The most notorious of these Acts is the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act, which allows the President to make regulations on virtually any subject, if he thinks urgent action is needed in the general public interest. The only limits on his power are, firstly, that he must revoke his regulations if Parliament requires him to do so [it has never done this]; and, secondly, that the regulations expire after six months [though they can be replaced by similar ones]. The Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act is not the only Act that gives extensive legislative powers to the President: some old statutes, particularly those inherited from the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, are almost as broad. The Control of Goods Act, for example, empowers the President to make regulations controlling the import, export, distribution, rationing, disposal, purchase and sale of goods, as well as the prices of goods and the charges for services relating to goods. So wide is the Act, that the President could, if he were so minded, use it to make regulations controlling the entire economy. Other statutes giving the President similarly broad powers are the Exchange Control Act, the Animal Health Act and the Plant Pests and Diseases Act. Many other Acts give Ministers wide powers to make regulations and statutory instruments. All these statutes should be repealed or amended to reduce Executive legislative powers, and the new Constitution should try so far as possible to prevent Parliament from delegating its legislative powers to the Executive. Any delegation should extend 38