Zimbabwe’s Zanu-PF is seeking to extend the president’s tenure by two years

Zimbabwe’s current government According to a party spokesman on Tuesday, the Zanu-PF party plans to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term in office by two years, until 2030.

He did not provide any information regarding the method by which this could be accomplished or whether constitutional amendments would be pursued to allow the 82-year-old Zanu-PF leader to continue in office.

Mnangagwa’s second and final tenure as president will conclude in 2028, as Zimbabwe’s constitution restricts the presidential office to two five-year terms.

The party’s director of information, Farai Marapira, informed Reuters by telephone that the issue of the president remaining in power has been unanimously agreed upon.

He responded, “The modalities have not been decided,” when asked whether that entailed amending the constitution to extend presidential tenure to seven years.

Zimbabwe was under the leadership of the late Robert Mugabe for a significant portion of its history since its independence in 1980. Mugabe served as prime minister from 1980 until his election as president in December 1987, a position he maintained until November 2017.

Mugabe publicly advocated for a one-party state and employed intimidation and violence to prevent anyone from contesting his monopoly on power at the ballot box.

The new constitution, which was signed into law by Mugabe in 2013, restricts presidents to two five-year mandates. It did not apply retroactively, and Mugabe would have been able to maintain his position for an additional decade had it not been for the 2017 coup that replaced him with his deputy, Mnangagwa.

Two years later, Mugabe passed away.

EXTENDED TERM LIMITS DISCUSSED AT CONFERENCE

Mnangagwa, a former intelligence director, has publicly stated that he will resign upon the conclusion of his term. However, the notion of eliminating term limits in Zimbabwe was discussed at a Zanu-PF conference in October of last year.

Welshman Ncube, a constitutional jurist, stated that the incumbent would not be affected by any constitutional amendment in theory.

“Mnangagwa will have to subject himself to two referendums, one to scrap the term limits and another to remove the provision that an incumbent cannot benefit from any amendments,” he indicated to Reuters.

Lovemore Madhuku, an additional constitutional counsel, stated that it was impossible for Mnangagwa to remain in power legally beyond 2028, as “there is no one who possesses the authority to extend the president’s term of office.”

According to a 2023 paper published in Scientific Research Publishing, 24 African governments have attempted to extend the authority of their president beyond the current constitutional limits since 1990. These governments typically achieve this by eliminating the two-term ceiling. All but four of these governments have succeeded.