Constitution of Zimbabwe (as amended by Constitution Amendment No. 19) Declaration of Rights or any other provision of the Constitution, have the right to sit and speak in the House but shall not have the right to vote therein. (3) The Parliamentary Legal Committee— (a) may, in examining any statutory instrument or draft statutory instrument in terms of subsection (1), report to the House of Assembly, Senate or to the Minister or authority concerned, as the case may be, whether in its opinion any provision of the statutory instrument or draft statutory instrument would, if enacted, be or, as the case may be, is ultra vires the enabling Act; (b) shall perform such other functions as may be prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament or in Standing Orders. (4) Standing Orders shall make provision for matters relating to the Parliamentary Legal Committee. (5) The provisions of paragraphs 4 and 8 of Schedule 4 shall apply in respect of the reports of the Parliamentary Legal Committee on Bills and statutory instruments. [Section inserted by section 8 of Act 31 of 1989 – Amendment No. 9 – and as substituted by section 10 of Act 5 of 2005 – Amendment No. 17] PART 4 General Matters Relating to Parliament 41 Tenure of seats of members (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the seat of a member of Parliament shall become vacant only— (a) on his death; (b) on the dissolution of Parliament next following his election or appointment; (c) if he resigns his seat by notice, in writing, to the President of the Senate or the Speaker, as the case may be, or to the Clerk of Parliament; [Paragraph as substituted by section 11 of Act 5 of 2005 – Amendment No. 17] (d) if he is absent from twenty-one consecutive sittings during any session without the leave of the Senate or the House of Assembly, as the case may be, and the Senate or the House of Assembly has resolved, by the affirmative votes of more than one half of its total membership, that the seat shall become vacant; [Paragraph as substituted by section 11 of Act 5 of 2005 – Amendment No. 17] (e) if, being a member referred to in section 34(1)(a) or 38(1) and having ceased to be a member of the political party of which he was a member at the date of his election to Parliament, the political party concerned, by written notice to the President of the Senate or the Speaker, as the case may be, declares that he has ceased to represent its interests in Parliament; - 55 -