Masvingo War Veterans Chairman Backs ZANU PF's Call For Mnangagwa's Term Extension
Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) Masvingo provincial chair Tendeukai Chinooneka said that they support ZANU PF’s stance in the province calling for an extension of President Mnangagwa’s term beyond 2028 when his second and final term is set to conclude.
ZANU PF structures are calling for Mnangagwa to remain in office past 2028 to ensure the realisation of his vision of transforming Zimbabwe into an upper-middle-income society by 2030.
Chinooneka’s remarks follow a dissenting opinion from some war veterans in Masvingo Province, who said that Mnangagwa should respect the Constitution and step aside when his current term ends. Said Chinooneka (via The Herald):
We have more than 4000 war veterans in Masvingo province and what is being said in other press reports that war veterans do not support President Mnangagwa’s continued stay in office beyond 2028 is not a true reflection of the situation on the ground.
There are just one or two individuals who are expressing their individual opinions. The correct position is that we stand with what the party (ZANU PF) says and here in Masvingo the ruling party has said they want President Mnangagwa to remain in power beyond 2028 and we are also guided by that.
Some ex-combatants in Masvingo Province described efforts to keep Mnangagwa in power beyond 2028 as “crazy”.
Speaking to TellZim News, a war veteran named Western Ezrah from Masvingo condemned the individuals who were “misleading the President” by asking him to violate the constitution. He said:
In 2013, the people of Zimbabwe, whom we liberated through the war of liberation, wrote a constitution.
The same people whom we freed are the ones calling for the breaking of the same constitution they wrote.
Calling for a third term is madness, the constitution is clear and the president should abide by it.So those who are pushing him to continue are really mad.
Ezrah added that ZANU PF had clear guidelines in place and that those individuals pushing for a third term for President Mnangagwa had no real understanding of the party’s origins or its long-term vision. He said:
People do not know where ZANU PF is coming from and if you look closely you will see that those calling for the extension of the term limit have no background of the liberation and the party itself.
The party has a hierarchy and that hierarchy was used since the war of liberation and if you look at the presidium you will see who is supposed to take over.
Even culturally, the elders eat first and because we are a cultured people, the elders lead first in their order.
Another war veteran, Retired Major General Gibson Mashingaidze, told TellZim News that President Mnangagwa should unequivocally follow the Constitution and refrain from seeking a third term in office, as he had previously promised.
Another war veteran who preferred anonymity said the Constitution is clear on presidential term limits.
He stated that as war veterans, they firmly believe in the peaceful transfer of power and upholding the Constitution.
The veteran added that those pushing for a third term for President Mnangagwa were doing so for their benefit, rather than the greater good of the country.
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