Zimbabwe ZANU-PF moves to extend President’s term

Zimbabwe’s governing ZANU-PF party has said it will begin steps to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term by two years, potentially keeping the 83-year-old leader in power until 2030. 

The party adopted this plan at its annual conference Saturday in the eastern city of Mutare. Hundreds of ZANU-PF delegates cheered as the motion passed. The party has been in power since Zimbabwe's independence in 1980.

The resolution instructs the government to "initiate the requisite legislative amendments” to implement the plan, said Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, who also serves as ZANU-PF’s legal secretary.

Under Zimbabwe’s Constitution, Mnangagwa is due to step down in 2028 after completing two five-year terms.  

Any extension would require amending the term-limit provisions and potentially referendums, according to legal experts. 

Mnangagwa came to power in 2017 after a coup ousted longtime leader Robert Mugabe. He was formally elected as president in the disputed 2018 general election. 

After his re-election in 2023, Mnangagwa described himself as a "constitutionalist" and said he would not seek a third term. 

However, factions loyal to him have campaigned for his stay in office until 2030. Allies of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, who led a 2017 coup against former President Robert Mugabe when he was still a general in the military, oppose any extension.

Former Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa dismissed the resolution, saying it was binding only on ZANU-PF members, not "Zimbabwe and her people."

Known as "the Crocodile," Mnangagwa has developed an authoritarian practice of power over the years. Human Rights Watch accused his government and party of repressing civil and political rights ahead of the 2023 election.