Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. MEMBERS of Parliament (MPs) have called on the government to make constitutional studies a compulsory subject in schools, arguing that the current approach is inadequate to promote public awareness of Zimbabwe’s supreme law.
They said a deeper understanding of the Constitution was vital in fostering a generation aware of its rights, responsibilities and State functions.
Currently, the Constitution is taught as an elective within Heritage Studies and partly through the History curriculum.
The push comes amid debate over proposed constitutional amendments, including plans to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term of office.
The Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No 3) Bill (CAB3) seeks to extend term limits by two years, scrap direct presidential elections and abolish some independent commissions, among other changes.
The issue was raised during a recent parliamentary session where MPs asked Primary and Secondary Education minister Torerai Moyo to account for progress on section 7 of the Constitution, which requires the State to ensure the Constitution is taught in schools.
Moyo said constitutional studies were offered as an elective and integrated into the History syllabus. He added that students were also exposed through moot court competitions, with two Zimbabwean schools winning gold and silver in Botswana last year.
“We are going to scale up the exercise so that, in the future, the majority of schools will be offering constitutional studies,” he said.
The debate arose after opposition MP Darlington Chigumbu asked whether students were allowed to express their views on CAB3.
Moyo initially said most students were below voting age and would only be taught the Bill’s contents after its passage without giving opinions.
However, opposition legislator Lynnette Karenyi-Kore challenged this, noting that most Form 5 students are 18 and eligible to vote.
Moyo later conceded that students aged 18 and above have the right to express their views.
Opposition MP Shakespeare Hamauswa asked if there are government plans to train teachers to ensure uniform delivery of constitutional education.
The minister did not respond.
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