MPs conspire to remove Mugabe: Daily News

Parliamentarians from both the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and Zanu PF are believed to be investigating the scope for legally removing President Robert Mugabe from power, including the possibility of impeaching him Thelma Chikwanha from Daily News reported.

The report says the daring moves are being contemplated in the light of the dramatic defeat of Zanu PF's candidate in the recent speaker of parliament elections.  Then, it was generally accepted that some Zanu PF MPs voted with their MDC counterparts to vote back Lovemore Moyo and to embarrass Zanu PF's chairman, Simon Khaya-Moyo.

The Daily News says it that the parliamentarians, who are fed up with Mugabe's contested leadership of the country, were looking into the question of whether the president's advanced age and failing health could be successfully used by the legislators "to retire Mugabe out of office".

Were that to happen, our Daily News sources claimed, Mugabe would be replaced by vice-president Joice Mujuru in the short term – as she supposedly enjoyed support from both MDC and Zanu PF MPs in parliament. This unlikely eventuality would see the more hawkish faction in Zanu PF that is allegedly aligned to Emmerson Mnanganga being frozen out of power.

While Mugabe seemingly has the power to dissolve parliament and to circumvent any moves to impeach him under the current laws, the concerned legislators and analysts canvassed by the Daily News believe that the Global Political Agreement (GPA) has created possible legal loopholes that can be used to remove the president.

The analysts said even under the old constitutional dispensation, the president could be impeached, as long as there was a two-thirds majority supporting such a move.

The Daily News says it has been told that the plan, which is allegedly being discussed by MPs from both factions of the MDC as well as Zanu PF, has gathered pace ever since it was reported that Mugabe's health is deteriorating.

Political analyst Ibbo Mandaza said an impeachment was possible, with or without the new constitution.

"It's possible and it's a question of proving that Mugabe is now incapacitated while he has also to prove that he is able to lead this country. But it can be done, especially in view of reports about his health and as long as two thirds of the MPs agree. Remember it will be a secret vote and it might turn out to be nasty for Mugabe," he said.

University of Zimbabwe political scientist John Makumbe agreed with Mandaza but said that the president would move to dissolve parliament as soon as he got whiff of the impeachment plan – and even though he was not empowered to do so under constitutional Amendment Number 19.

Human Rights Researcher Pedzisayi Ruhanya doubted if the parliamentarians would succeed, saying the judiciary and legislature were largely appendages of the presidency and, therefore, impotent.

"It will not happen. Before the process is over, parliament will be dissolved. The ultimate authority in the Zimbabwean political system is the executive of government presided over by the President," Ruhanya said.

Another analyst said Mugabe's woes were currently worsened by the fact that hawks from his own party also wanted him to go now – although many of them were too scared "to be seen to be plotting again as happened during the Tsholotsho debacle".

Still, he said, many people in Zanu PF knew that Mugabe was no longer "electable" as he had proven to be a liability to the party over the last 10 years.