Source: Zanu PF sets 2030 wheels in motion -Newsday Zimbabwe
THE ruling Zanu PF party has intensified the campaign to amend the Constitution to allow President Emmerson Mnangagwa to retain power beyond his current term, with senior figures openly calling for an extension to 2030 during a party meeting in Highfield, Harare, yesterday.
The push, which signals a significant political manoeuvre, was unveiled during a Zanu PF conference feedback meeting, where senior members rallied the party base behind the controversial idea.
Zanu PF Harare provincial chairperson Godwills Masimirembwa said Parliament should amend the Constitution to facilitate the extension of Mnangagwa tenure.
“According to the conference’s resolution number 1, I was telling the masses that President Mnangagwa’s term should be extended and that Parliament should change the Constitution,” Masimirembwa said.
“We cannot afford to lose the momentum of our development agenda by changing leadership now.”
Zanu PF politburo member Omega Hungwe said the proposed constitutional change was a national test of loyalty for Harare residents, who have religiously voted for the opposition since 2000.
She said “in the event of a referendum, Harare residents should not sell out by voting ‘No’ to the extension”.
Central committee member and businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei argued for continuity, saying: “President Mnangagwa should continue leading us because we can’t change a scoring striker.”
For Mnangagwa to legally stay in power beyond 2028, Zanu PF should navigate a two-pronged constitutional process.
The current Constitution, enacted in 2013, limits a president to two five-year terms.
Mnangagwa, who won his first term in 2018 after toppling the late Robert Mugabe in a November 2017 coup, is serving his second and final term.
The Constitution states that an incumbent cannot be a beneficiary of changes to the supreme law, but for that to happen, there are several stages they have to pass through.
Fears abound that Zimbabweans will be coerced to vote “yes” in the referenda needed to facilitate amendments to the Constitution.
Zanu PF, which holds a two-thirds majority in Parliament, will have to pass a Bill amending the Constitution.
This requires a two-thirds majority in both the National Assembly and the Senate.
Second, since the amendment affects the term of the President, it must be approved in a national referendum.
Political analyst Pardon Taodzera said it was obvious that Zanu PF would change the Constitution.
“This is no longer a behind-the-scenes discussion, it is now official party mobilisation rhetoric,” he said.
“Zanu PF is testing the waters and simultaneously preparing its supporters for a major political battle.
“They are aware of the constitutional hurdles, hence the early start to galvanise their base and frame the narrative as one of necessary continuity versus chaos.”
However, legal expert Arnold Humanikwa said changing the Constitution would not be easy for the ruling party.
“While the procedure for amendment is clear in the Constitution, the substance of this particular change raises profound democratic questions,” Humanikwa said.
“The presidential term limit was a hard-fought provision to prevent the perpetuation of executive power.
“Any attempt to remove it must be scrutinised not just for its legality, but for its conformity with the principles of democratic governance that underpin our supreme law.”
Presidential term limits were introduced in the 2013 Constitution that was overwhelmingly endorsed by the nation following the late Robert Mugabe’s reluctance to relinquish power.
After rising to power through a coup four years later, Mnangagwa said he was ushering a “new kind of democracy” in Zimbabwe, but his critics say he has become a worse autocrat than his predecessor.
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