effective on the 22nd May, 2013 provides that elections must be conducted under an “Act of Parliament”,10 not Presidential Regulations. An “Act of Parliament” is specifically defined in the Constitution as a Bill which has been presented to and passed by Parliament, and assented to and signed by the President.11 Regulations made under the Presidential Powers (Temporary) Measures Act do not fall within this definition. Notwithstanding this clear provision, the elections were conducted under provisions introduced by Mugabe in the form of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Amendment of Electoral Act) Regulations.12This use of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act was challenged in the Constitutional Court in four election related cases. Nearly a year after the cases were brought, the Court has yet to give a judgment on the point. Once the new Constitution became fully effective, the use of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act in any manner at all became unconstitutional. Section 134 proscribes the ability of Parliament to delegate its “primary law-making function”13allowing only the delegation of the power to make statutory instruments by way of an Act of Parliament which “must specify the limits of the power, the nature and scope of the statutory instrument that may be made and the principles and standards applicable to the statutory instrument.”14 Such legislation is referred to in the Constitution as “subsidiary legislation”. The Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act clearly conferred primary law making powers upon the President, allowing the President to make Regulations which “may provide for any matter or thing for which Parliament can make provision in an Act”. Given that any laws made under this legislation prevailed over any Act of Parliament to the contrary, notwithstanding the fact that they could be revoked by Parliament, or lapsed after six months if not approved by Parliament, they could hardly be described as subsidiary legislation - the only category of law making power that the Constitution now allows to be delegated. Furthermore, since the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act conferred a general and primary law making power, it did not specify the limit of the power, nature and scope of each instrument to be made under the Act. It is likely that this section was introduced into the new Constitution precisely with the intention of rendering the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act unconstitutional. Although the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act is only supposed to be used in cases of urgency when exigencies prevent the passage of necessary legislation through Parliament, this requirement has often been ignored, and the Act deployed on numerous occasions. The Mugabe Administration found the Act a means to introduce legislation without the inconvenience of approaching Parliament and became heavily reliant upon it. Accordingly, section 134 of the Constitution has been treated by the new government as having no impact upon the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act. Mugabe has continued to legislate using its provisions. In January 2014, the President purported to bring three sets of Regulations into law – The Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Amendment of Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act) Regulations; The Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Amendment of Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Act) Regulations; and Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Trafficking in Persons Act) Regulations.15 This is all primary law, not subsidiary legislation. Section 157(1) of the Constitution. Section 131(1) of the Constitution. 12 S.I. 85 of 2013. 13 Section 134(a) – “Parliament's primary law-making power must not be delegated” 14 Section 134(d) 15 [Chapter 9:24] S.I. 2/2014; [Chapter 9:23] S.I. 3/2014; and S.I. 4/2014 respectively. 10 11