In a move that exposes the deepening divisions within Zanu-PF, party spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa has found himself at odds with Secretary for Legal Affairs Patrick Chinamasa over the possibility of President Emmerson Mnangagwa serving a third term.
Chinamasa, during the Zanu-PF Annual People’s Conference, revealed that in his consultations with the President, Mnangagwa had consistently asserted his stance as a constitutionalist.
Chinamasa cited his involvement in the drafting of Zimbabwe’s current constitution, which explicitly limits presidential terms to 2028.
Addressing journalists in Harare on Tuesday, Mutsvangwa suggested that the Constitution allows the electorate to revisit and award Mnangagwa a third term through a referendum.
He emphasised that the onus is on the people, and that it has nothing to do with the President’s wishes, who is compliant with the Constitution.
Mutsvangwa, again, indicated that the President was a “passive player” in the agenda to extend his term of office until 2030.
“He is not the one who is demanding the third term. The Constitution does not allow him. But the Constitution allows the electorate organised by a party like Zanu-PF to revisit and award him a third term.
“The onus is on the people through a referendum. It has nothing to do with the wishes of the President who is compliant with the Constitution,” he said.
“Can you imagine a boardroom where somebody has been appointed a CEO by the board. And immediately, he is told that your successor is this one.
“Is it possible to run a company like that where a CEO has been immediately seconded with a successor? It means you have created two centres of power in the company.”
Mutsvangwa castigated Chinamasa, saying he should have aired his views way before the resolutions were made by the party.
“An opinion by a lawyer, even if he pronounces it at a conference, does not supersede the decision of that conference. If they wanted to express the views that he did, he could have done it at the committee stage,” he said.
Former Finance Minister and constitutional lawyer Tendai Biti warned of “unlawful unconstitutional attempts to force march an extension of the Presidential Term Limit.”
“The biggest fight we face in 2025 is the unlawful unconstitutional attempts to force march an extension of the Presidential Term Limit. They will pull no stops to achieve this nefarious agenda. We have to be ready to say no to fascism and authoritarian consolidation,” Biti said.
The Zanu-PF party is currently embroiled in a fierce succession battle. Despite Mnangagwa’s repeated assertions that he has no intention of extending his term beyond 2028, some party members are pushing for him to remain in power.
Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, a top contender to succeed Mnangagwa, is reportedly prepared to resist this plan, setting the stage for a potentially divisive battle for the party’s leadership.
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