MDC wants Attorney General probed

By Simplicious Chirinda

HARARE – Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC party has asked Parliament to investigate the country’s Attorney General, Johannes Tomana, who it accuses of carrying out “politically motivated prosecutions” targeting its members and human rights activists.

In a motion that Parliament began debating Tuesday and will conclude today, the MDC urged the House to condemn “the continuous selective application of the law” by the AG’s office and said an “Independent Parliamentary Select Committee” should be appointed to investigate Tomana.

The former opposition party also urged Parliament to call for “the immediate withdrawal, reversal and quashing of all convictions or pending prosecutions” it said were politically motivated, a move that would be a first by the House.

MDC legislator for Masvingo Urban constituency Tongai Matutu, who tabled the motion, accused Tomana of selectively using the law to secure conviction of MDC legislators in a bid to whittle down the party’s slim parliamentary majority.

Matutu told ZimOnline: “We moved the motion to highlight what we perceive as selective application of the law particularly by the Attorney General. They want to reduce our members in parliament. This selective application of the law does not provide for national healing and integration. We must stop the prosecutions.”

However some legal experts questioned the MDC’s call on Parliament to pressure the AG drop certain cases saying the Constitution did not permit the House to dictate to Tomana who to prosecute.

“I do not think it is for Parliament to say this person can be prosecuted or not but Parliament can insist that laws be applied impartially,” said Derek Matyaszak, a former University of Zimbabwe law lecturer and now a researcher with the Research and Advocacy Unit.

At least five MDC parliamentarians are either facing serious court cases or have been convicted by the courts and sentenced to more than six months in jail which disqualifies them from Parliament under a law that says any legislator who is convicted of six months or more loses their seat.

Clerk of Parliament Austin Zvoma has suspended from the House two of the convicted MDC legislators although they have appealed against the suspensions.

The Tsvangirai-led MDC would lose its slim majority in the House of Assembly if its MPs are eventually sent to jail for six months or more.

The MDC, which formed a unity government with President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU PF party and the smaller MDC formation led by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara last February, has long opposed Tomana’s appointment as AG.

Tsvangirai’s party accuses Tomana – a self-declared ZANU PF supporter – of using his position to advance the interests of Mugabe’s party.

The MDC wants Tomana’s appointment rescinded because Mugabe did not consult Tsvangirai and Mutambara before making the appointment as is required under a power-sharing agreement that led to formation of the unity government. – ZimOnline