Mugabe must resign - MDC-T Bulawayo province

MDC-T Bulawayo province has called for the resignation of President Robert Mugabe over his reading of the wrong speech in parliament.

The party said the constitution stipulates that if the President is incapacitated physically or mentally, it is wise for him to step down or for members of both houses of parliament to pass a vote of no confidence and remove him.

 Morgan Tsvangirai led party said Mugabe must simply step down as what he did clearly shows that he is no longer able to rule the country. Provincial party spokesperson; Felix Mafa Sibanda said Mugabe's inability to govern is a disgrace to the nation.

"According to Zimbabwe's constitution section 97 (1) (d), if the President is either incapacitated physically or mentally, he should leave or be removed from the said office of the presidency due to his or her inability to perform," Sibanda said. "It is very clear and beyond any shadow of doubt that President Mugabe has definitely passed his prime time in that he could not recognize or realise that what he was reading was the second bite of cherry. It is not only his advance age but inability to deduce what is right or wrong."

Sibanda said it is therefore a cause for concern that such miscarriage of duty is tantamount to gross negligence of good governance or administration to say it mildly.

"There is one school of thought that says, he was set by the faction opposed to Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, but be the case, if he had alert mental faculties, he would have picked up the anomalies from the onset," Sibanda said. "It is therefore prudent that both houses of parliament should adhere and implement section 97 (1) (d) read together with section 97 (2) and 97 (3) (a) and (b) and remove him from the post."

Sibanda said Zimbabweans across political divide were extremely shocked and embarrassed by the blunder made by Mugabe during the opening of the parliament.

"We as Bulawayo MDC-T province and other democratic stakeholders demand a reservedly apology from the President's office," he said. "It is one of the events that is to be recorded in the Genues book of records and as such an apology is a must to soothe the embarrassing situation suffered therein by all Zimbabweans across political divide."

However, this come at a time when the leader of Zanu PF in the house, Mnangagwa having sought leave for the removal of the mistaken speech from the house, to be replaced by the correct one. Mnangagwa did that on Wednesday and it was adopted.