Judgment No. CCZ 05/18 8
Const. Application No. 32/17
crucial question for determination is thus whether the ‘approval’ that must be sought from the
Minister is tantamount to guidance, regulation or influence in the functions of ZEC.
The word ‘approve’ becomes critical. Approve is a transitive verb which means:
to have a positive opinion of someone or something - the Cambridge English Dictionary
to accept, pronounce as being satisfactory
to officially agree with a plan, request or to say that something is good enough to be used
or is correct-Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary
To give formal sanction to; to confirm authoritatively –Black’s Law Dictionary, 8th ed.
From the above definitions, what is clear is that ‘approval’ is to sanction an act as
correct. In the context of s 192 (6) of the Electoral Act, it means that the regulations cannot be
promulgated without first obtaining the sanction of the Minister as to their correctness.
The crux of this application is thus whether the requirement to acquire the sanction of
the Minister concerning regulations is tantamount to him regulating or governing the functions of
ZEC.
The applicant accepts it as inevitable that when preparing for elections ZEC has to
promulgate administrative regulations to deal with various aspects of the elections. Any election
demands the active participation of the other arms of the Executive in as much as ZEC cannot
operate without the co-operation and assistance of these arms. This then informs the requirement
in the Act that the Minister must approve the regulations. Whilst ZEC has the mandate to conduct