Harare, Zimbabwe – The High Court of Zimbabwe has issued an interim order barring any recalls of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) officials until the resolution of a related case, HC 6872/23.
This decision prevents the first respondent from recalling or issuing letters of recall for members of the National Assembly, Senate, or local authorities elected under the CCC ticket.
In the ruling, Judge Mathonsi highlighted that the applicants had relied on the Chitapi J judgment to argue that the first respondent was effectively barred from recalling any members.
The court stated, “The reshuffle in this case amounts to a recall literally and at law.” This observation underscored the argument that the office bearers held roles within the CSRO but no longer occupied positions that could justify recalls.
The judge further ruled that removing members from the CSRO and replacing them with others without valid constitutional authority amounted to a recall, which was deemed unlawful. The court emphasized that “effectively, the first respondent disobeyed the order rendered in HH 652/23.”
Citing the totality of the circumstances, the court declared the application meritorious. However, it determined that costs on a higher scale were unnecessary, given the internal nature of the party’s issues. Instead, costs were awarded on an ordinary scale against the first and third respondents, with the provision that one respondent would bear the costs, and the other would be absolved.
As part of the amendments, Paragraph 5 of the draft order was deleted, and the acronym “SROC” was replaced with “CSRO” throughout the order.
This ruling is seen as a pivotal development in Zimbabwe’s political landscape, particularly as it involves the internal dynamics of one of the country’s leading opposition parties. The High Court’s decision is expected to set the tone for future legal disputes within political organizations.
