By Sukuoluhle Ndlovu
Masvingo – The Southern African Parliamentary Support Trust carried out a pre sensitization meeting on the impending Independent Complaints Commission Bill in Masvingo, Monday.
The meeting was held at Masvingo Civic Centre.
SAPST started the pre sensitization meetings in Masvingo and Mutare and eventually in all provinces.
Speaking at the meeting, SAPST Program Advisor (Outreach and representation) Vivian Mashavave said the pre-sensitization meetings are to help citizens understand bills before making any contributions.
“We started the sensitisation meetings in Masvingo in a bid to help people understand about the impending Independent Commission Bill before it is passed on as a law, people should be equipped with the necessary information so that they give the necessary information to be placed in the bill.
“As an organisation, we work with Members of Parliament but we saw it fit to deal with citizens since it involves them. In the previous bill hearings we discovered that people did not fully participate before due to lack of knowledge so as an organisation we saw it fit to help people understand before they attend the bill,” she said.
Mashavave added that when bills are passed with gaps citizens will likely face negative impacts.
Residents present at the meeting bemoaned the exclusion of their submissions by legislators who host public hearings.
The Independent Complaints Commission Bill was gazzetted last year on the 24th of November 2020.
The Bill seeks to establish a commission to investigate complaints of misconduct on the part of members of the security services and provide remedies.
SAPST is an organization that was established in 2007 with the aim of strengthening Parliaments locally and regionally. SAPST’s work involves training of Committees and the Secretariat of Parliament in legislative, policy and budget analysis and reporting.
