An independent MP, Temba Mliswa said that is is a lie that the Zimbabwe military removed former President Robert Mugabe from power.
Mliswa said that the army failed to push Mugabe out of office and if it were not the citizens who demonstrated, and parliament which began the impeachment process, Mugabe would have refused to go.
Mliswa said this during an all-stakeholders post-election workshop hosted by the Zimbabwe Elections Support Network (Zesn) in Bulawayo last week. Said Mliswa
I want to address the issue that the army was part of the process of ensuring that there was a second republic so were all of us.
… Then there was the people’s march, the people’s revolutions, led by the war veterans and everybody involved. It was the first time to see Members of Parliament coming together. … the issue of impeachment was first started by James Maridadi (MDC-T) and I seconded it when the army failed to remove the former President, and I say this for the first time; they failed. He [Mugabe] refused to go, that was when there was an impeachment process.
To lie every day yet there’s evidence when the army wanted to remove Mugabe, did he go? Let’s be honest. That is why I get too emotional at Parliament, it’s because of lies.
Mugabe was put under house arrest by the military at his Blue Roof mansion in Borrowdale for a couple of days.
He adamantly refused to step aside even when thousands of Zimbabweans poured into the streets, calling for his resignation.
It was only when impeachment proceedings started in Parliament, and Mugabe realised that he had lost the support of the bulk of ZANU PF MPs that he resigned.