Tendai Ruben Mbofana
Wow, I never thought the madness in Zimbabwe could get any worse!
Who even comes up with all these crazy ideas?
I believed it was terrible enough that we had the world’s third oldest president who, at 82 years old, appeared intent on extending his tenure beyond his constitutional term limit.
This is a man who will be 86 years old by the time his term ends in 2028, but he may actually continue on until 2030 when he is 88 years old.
Alternatively, if the ruling ZANU PF party gets its way – by successfully amending the country’s Constitution and allowing him to serve a third term – he may be in power until the age of 91 years old in 2033.
According to my research, the oldest president in the world at the moment is Paul Biya of Cameroon (at 91 years old), and then Nangolo Mbumba of Namibia (83 years old), and then Mnangagwa (who turned 82 years old yesterday).
Is it then not utter insanity that there are those who actually want Mnangagwa to go on as Zimbabwe head of state, especially until he likely becomes the oldest president in the world?
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However, the ridiculousness does not end there.
We have those pushing for the extension of the tenure of a leader who has dismally failed to endear himself with the people of Zimbabwe.
If anything, Mnangagwa has struggled to convincingly win the two elections in which he has participated.
Despite the controversial and debatable ‘wins’, in 2018, he secured a paltry 50.8 percent of the popular vote, whilst most recently in 2023 he only managed to garner 52.6 percent.
In fact, in both elections, he actually received far fewer votes than his own ZANU PF party’s parliamentary candidates!
Why wouldn’t he fare so terribly?
According to statistics by the Wold Bank, poverty in Zimbabwe has actually increased under Mnangagwa.
In 2017, when he grabbed power from Robert Gabriel Mugabe through a military coup d’état, only 30 percent of the population was regarded as living in extreme poverty.
By 2019, this figure had risen to 38 percent.
Today, an estimated 49 percent of ordinary Zimbabweans are living in extreme poverty – based on the UN (United Nations) standard of earning less than US$5.50 a day.
No wonder Mnangagwa is so unpopular.
What reasoning is then there for amending a sacrosanct document as the country’s Constitution?
This is something that should never ordinarily be tempered with willy-nilly, especially for the pleasing of only one individual.
The supreme law is guarded jealousy as the guidelines and principles on which a country is governed.
It is like the Bible of governance.
It should never be changed to suit any particular person’s interests – no matter who that may be.
It then becomes the mother of all absurdities when we have those pushing for its amendment simply to extend the term of a particular president – more so, one who has never been overwhelmingly popular with the people.
Let me give an example.
No one can dispute that Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was one of the most beloved and popular leaders of our time, in the whole wide world – but more specifically, in his own South Africa.
He is greatly revered even today – 11 years after his death.
Yet, despite this massive adoration – for a man who was larger than life – there was no way South Africans were ever going to amend their constitution simply to allow him to go beyond the two-term limit.
We never heard the governing ANC party clamouring for Mandela to serve till, let’s say, 2020, so that he could ‘see through his dream for a rainbow nation
As a matter of fact, he was gentleman enough to serve only one term (1994 to 1999) – despite a two-term provision – by doing the right thing of retiring on account of advanced age.
Interestingly, when he stepped down as the head of state of South Africa in 1999, he was 81 years old – having been born in 1918.
This is about the same age of our president in Zimbabwe!
Similarly, 81 years old is the same age as current US president Joe Biden – who was recently pushed to withdraw from the November 2024 presidential elections by his own Democratic Party due to the same reason.
Furthermore, in 2001, then US president George W. Bush reached an approval rating of 90 percent – the highest of any American head of state – after the 11th September terrorist attacks.
Yet, never did we hear his Republican Party pushing for the US Constitution to be amended for Bush to remain in office past his two-term limit in 2009, ostensibly so that he can ‘finish the war on terror’!
So, what is so special about Mnangagwa – who can not even garner more than 53 percent of the popular vote?
Nonetheless, I saved the greatest preposterousness for last.
As Mnangagwa turned 82 years old yesterday, 15th September 2024, he was somehow touted as the reincarnation of King Munhumutapa!
What was that circus all about at the Great Zimbabwe monument?
They actually had the audacity to proclaim Mnangagwa’s birthday ‘Munhumutapa Day ‘!
I will not even waste my time on the madness of holding an event named after Munhumutapa at Great Zimbabwe – yet the seat of the Mutapa Empire was further north in Dande (present-day Mashonaland Central).
Great Zimbabwe was the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe, and certainly not the Mutapa Empire ruled by the Munhumutapa (or Mwene Mutapa).
The Munhumutapa Empire, which was founded by Nyatsimba Mutota, flourished from the 13th to the 17th century – whilst the Kingdom of Zimbabwe existed much earlier between the 11th and the 15th century.
Besides commemorating Munhumutapa at the wrong site, the fact that Mnangagwa appeared to equate himself with this phenomenal king is more than disturbing
What game is he playing?
Does he now want to justify his continued stay in power under the veneer of him being a monarch – who can rule until death and unchallenged?
Is this now ZANU PF’s new scheme?
If so, then this is the biggest threat to democracy that this country has ever faced since independence in 1980.
How utterly deplorable!
Zimbabwe is a constitutional democracy – well, at least on paper.
According to section 91 of the Constitution, the president only serves two terms – which, under section 95, are defined as five years each.
In fact, based on section 328 (7), even in the event of a constitutional amendment to the term limit provisions, this can not benefit someone who either holds or has held the particular office.
So, in other words, it is game over for Mnangagwa in 2028 if he wants Zimbabwe to be taken seriously as a constitutional democracy.
Yet, here he is branding himself as King Munhumutapa – worse at the wrong site!!
Regai ndege dzidonhe zvechokadi!!
- Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/