Zanu PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa says President Emmerson Mnangagwa was aware of the dangers of prolonged incumbency without popular support, citing the downfall of his predecessor Robert Mugabe as a cautionary lesson.
In an interview with The Standard yesterday, Mutsvangwa said Mnangagwa closely observed the final years of Mugabe’s rule and the political turbulence that led to the November 2017 coup.
He said Mnangagwa was “alert” to the developments that led to the fall of Mugabe and was fully conscious of the risks of the country reliving a similar political crisis.
“He watched in trepidation and horror as senility manacled an aging President Mugabe and the reckless G40 power pretenders conjured a palace coup and the creation of a family dynasty,” Mutsvangwa said.
“Having gone through the treadmill of grappling with such a threatening scenario, he is very alive and alert to the nation facing a repeat scenario that stalks Zanu PF and its quest for the glory of the permanent Zimbabwe revolution.”
His remarks came amid mounting controversy over the proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3, which critics argue would a violation of the Constitution.
Proponents of the amendments argue that they seek to strengthen governance structures and address years of political toxicity.
Critics have said the Bill seeks to extend Mnangagwa’s tenure beyond his constitutionally set two terms which expires in 2028.
Zanu PF adopted a resolution to extend Mnangagwa’s term in 2024, and ratified it last year at its annual conference held in Mutare.
The bill, which proposes sweeping changes to the constitution including scrapping direct presidential election elections, has been met with fierce opposition from Mnangagwa’s critics.
Last week, six war veterans represented by constitutional lawyer Lovemore Madhuku filed a Constitutional Court application challenging the proposed amendments.
"The bill seeks, in both design and effect, to prolong the 1st respondent's incumbency and current term of office," the court papers read.
"That constitutional violation is further deepened by the manifest intention not to hold a referendum, notwithstanding the constitution's entrenched safeguards against unilateral alteration of the democratic tenure framework".
The matter is not yet set for a hearing.
Former senior British MP Kate Hoey on Friday said the bill was an attack on democracy.
“For anyone who cares about what is happening in Zimbabwe this is the latest attack on democracy,” Hoey posted on X.
Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said critics of the proposed amendments were offside.
“In essence, we elected to uphold the Presidential term limit in its entirety, refraining from any alteration to section 91(2) or any facet of section 328, particularly subsection (7),” Ziyambi told state media last week.
“The presidential term limit is still there. We have just elongated the election cycle from five to seven years. It is not specific to a person but to the office of the President.”
Mutsvangwa also praised Mnangagwa’s intellectual capacity and international engagement, with reference to his interview with American conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, who recently interviewed Mnangagwa during the World Governance Summit in Dubai.
Mutsvangwa framed this engagement as evidence of Mnangagwa’s global reach and ideological clarity, boasting that he personally facilitated the high-profile media interview for the President.
Addressing a press conference last Thursday, the Zanu PF spokesperson took a swipe at unnamed Zanu PF members whom he accused of attempting to usurp power from Mnangagwa.
“If it ain't broken, why do you want to mend it?,” he said.
“Let this man continue because he is doing a good job.
“Why do you want to remove a good man doing a good job simply because there is a clamour by certain people who want to take over?
“You are untested, and you have never won an election before, and you want to take over. No. The people of Zimbabwe want comfort and security.”
He did not mention anyone by name.
Mutsvangwa also declared that he harboured no presidential ambitions.
“I have always rooted for him when everybody has clamoured for leadership change," he said.