Harare High Court judge Justice Isaac Muzenda has ordered the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to ensure that all teachers and other civil servants who will be working as election officers on July 30, will be able to vote.
Justice Muzenda ordered Zec to give the affected people a break from their duties and to provide them with transport to allow them to exercise their rights to vote. This follows an application by the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz).
Part of the court order reads:
WHEREUPON, after reading documents filed of record and hearing Counsel
IT IS ORDERED BY CONSENT THAT:
1. The applicant’s (Artuz) members and any other civil servants who have been duly seconded as Electoral Officers and/or in any capacity are entitled to vote on the 30th July 2018 if such persons are duly registered in terms of the law and satisfy the requisite conditions on the day of voting.
2. Notwithstanding the secondment or deployment of the persons mentioned in paragraph 1 to areas in which they are not ordinarily registered to vote, the 1st respondent (Zec) shall ensure that any such persons are able to vote on the 30th July 2018 at their appropriate polling stations.
3. In order to facilitate the voting of applicant’s members and other civil servants seconded to the 1st respondent as Electoral/Polling Officers or any capacity, the 1st respondent shall take such measures and steps, which include but are not limited to providing transport to and from the respective polling stations where each member is entitled to vote at, affording a temporary break from 1st respondent duties to enable applicant’s members or any other civil servants to vote on the 30th of July 2018 before returning to their respective deployed polling stations.
4. The applicant’s members or civil servants seconded to the 1st respondent shall be given priority to vote to enable them to promptly return to work.
Artuz was represented by Denford Halimani of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR).
Source: Pindula
