MDC Senator for Manicaland, Douglas Mwonzora has said that Senate on Wednesday passed the Maintenance of Peace and Order (MOPO) Bill.
The MOPO Bill replaces the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) which has been dubbed “draconian” in various quarters of the society.
Posting on Twitter this morning, the former MDC Secretary-General said:
The MOPO Bill was passed by the Senate yesterday. We did our best. This bill is retrogressive and unconstitutional. It does not advance our democracy at all. We hope that when it is signed into law, it will be challenged in the Constitutional Court.
The MOPO bill has also received massive criticism with some law experts saying that it was repressive and a replica of POSA which it seeks to repeal.
Team Pachedu, a group of social media activists considered to be sympathetic to the opposition MDC party has, like Douglas Mwonzora and several law experts, contended that the bill was an extension of apartheid laws since several provisions within the bill were extracted from apartheid laws.
The bill has been accused of limiting citizens’ right and freedom of association. The timing of the bill is, however, a bit amiss as it coincides with the MDC nationwide demonstrations starting tomorrow, 16 August.
Meanwhile, the police have not yet authorised and or responded to the MDC’s notice to demonstrate.
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