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Madhuku trashes Zanu-PF's ED2030 plans
2 hrs ago |
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Constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku has strongly condemned Zanu-PF's reported plans to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa's term of office to 2030, describing the move as unconstitutional and legally untenable.
Speaking to 263Chat, Madhuku said there was no legal mechanism under Zimbabwe's Constitution that could allow Mnangagwa to stay in power beyond his second and final term, which ends in 2028.
"We do not know how they intend to do it; they have not indicated how they would want to amend the Constitution," Madhuku said.
"But what is very clear is that it is not possible to ensure that when the President's term ends in 2028, he remains in office beyond 2028. There is no legal mechanism of doing it as it currently stands."
The debate over Mnangagwa's possible stay beyond 2028 began after Zanu-PF's 2024 People's Conference in Bulawayo, where delegates controversially passed a resolution proposing an extension of his term to 2030.
The proposal has since dominated national politics, deepening divisions within a country still scarred by the late Robert Mugabe's decades-long rule. Mugabe remained in power for 37 years before being ousted in a military-assisted coup in 2017 that brought Mnangagwa to power.
Under Section 91(2) of Zimbabwe's Constitution, a president may serve only two five-year terms, and any attempt to alter this clause requires a referendum.
However, sources suggest that some within Zanu-PF are exploring ways to avoid public consultation by exploiting possible constitutional loopholes and using parliamentary influence to push the changes through.
"A referendum cannot be avoided"
Madhuku warned that any attempt to tamper with presidential term limits without consulting the electorate would be unconstitutional.
"The kind of amendments they are talking about are not possible without a referendum," he said.
"There are a few things you can amend without going for a referendum, but if you want to alter the term of office of the president, the exercise of executive powers, or the structure of the state, you cannot avoid a referendum.
This idea of avoiding a referendum means that they know the proposal is not popular with the people."
Jonathan Moyo defends "term length" amendment theory
Exiled former minister Professor Jonathan Moyo, a key strategist once aligned with Zanu-PF, has advanced a counter-argument through his Breaking Barriers Initiative, suggesting Mnangagwa's term could be "lengthened" without breaching the two-term limit.
Moyo argues that amending Section 95(2)(b) - which defines the length of a presidential term - would not affect Section 91(2), which limits presidents to two terms.
"Amending Section 95(2)(b) to seven years, for instance, would simply recalibrate this flexible duration, enabling the extension to 2030 via a two-thirds vote in each House in Parliament - free from the dictates of Sections 328(6)-(9)," Moyo wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Legal experts, however, have rejected this reasoning, warning it amounts to a manipulation of constitutional intent designed to entrench power while bypassing the electorate.
The push to extend Mnangagwa's term is widely seen as part of deepening factional struggles within Zanu-PF.
An extended term would strengthen Mnangagwa's influence and that of his close ally, businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei, who recently joined the party's Central Committee.
However, it would deal a blow to Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, who is widely regarded as Mnangagwa's likely successor. Analysts warn that such a move could reignite tensions reminiscent of the 2017 coup that brought Mnangagwa to power.
Madhuku stressed that term limits exist to safeguard democracy by ensuring leadership renewal, not to punish underperforming leaders.
"It is wrong for any political party on its own to want to impose a constitution on the people," he said.
"Term limits are actually imposed to limit very good presidents. They were invented to ensure that a person would not remain in office merely because they were doing well.
Term limits are for good presidents; you do not need term limits for a poor president who will obviously be removed in an election."
The controversy underscores growing tensions within Zimbabwe's ruling elite and raises fears that the country could be heading toward another constitutional crisis if Zanu-PF presses ahead with the plan to extend Mnangagwa's rule beyond 2028.
Speaking to 263Chat, Madhuku said there was no legal mechanism under Zimbabwe's Constitution that could allow Mnangagwa to stay in power beyond his second and final term, which ends in 2028.
"We do not know how they intend to do it; they have not indicated how they would want to amend the Constitution," Madhuku said.
"But what is very clear is that it is not possible to ensure that when the President's term ends in 2028, he remains in office beyond 2028. There is no legal mechanism of doing it as it currently stands."
The debate over Mnangagwa's possible stay beyond 2028 began after Zanu-PF's 2024 People's Conference in Bulawayo, where delegates controversially passed a resolution proposing an extension of his term to 2030.
The proposal has since dominated national politics, deepening divisions within a country still scarred by the late Robert Mugabe's decades-long rule. Mugabe remained in power for 37 years before being ousted in a military-assisted coup in 2017 that brought Mnangagwa to power.
Under Section 91(2) of Zimbabwe's Constitution, a president may serve only two five-year terms, and any attempt to alter this clause requires a referendum.
However, sources suggest that some within Zanu-PF are exploring ways to avoid public consultation by exploiting possible constitutional loopholes and using parliamentary influence to push the changes through.
"A referendum cannot be avoided"
Madhuku warned that any attempt to tamper with presidential term limits without consulting the electorate would be unconstitutional.
"The kind of amendments they are talking about are not possible without a referendum," he said.
"There are a few things you can amend without going for a referendum, but if you want to alter the term of office of the president, the exercise of executive powers, or the structure of the state, you cannot avoid a referendum.
This idea of avoiding a referendum means that they know the proposal is not popular with the people."
Jonathan Moyo defends "term length" amendment theory
Exiled former minister Professor Jonathan Moyo, a key strategist once aligned with Zanu-PF, has advanced a counter-argument through his Breaking Barriers Initiative, suggesting Mnangagwa's term could be "lengthened" without breaching the two-term limit.
Moyo argues that amending Section 95(2)(b) - which defines the length of a presidential term - would not affect Section 91(2), which limits presidents to two terms.
"Amending Section 95(2)(b) to seven years, for instance, would simply recalibrate this flexible duration, enabling the extension to 2030 via a two-thirds vote in each House in Parliament - free from the dictates of Sections 328(6)-(9)," Moyo wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Legal experts, however, have rejected this reasoning, warning it amounts to a manipulation of constitutional intent designed to entrench power while bypassing the electorate.
The push to extend Mnangagwa's term is widely seen as part of deepening factional struggles within Zanu-PF.
An extended term would strengthen Mnangagwa's influence and that of his close ally, businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei, who recently joined the party's Central Committee.
However, it would deal a blow to Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, who is widely regarded as Mnangagwa's likely successor. Analysts warn that such a move could reignite tensions reminiscent of the 2017 coup that brought Mnangagwa to power.
Madhuku stressed that term limits exist to safeguard democracy by ensuring leadership renewal, not to punish underperforming leaders.
"It is wrong for any political party on its own to want to impose a constitution on the people," he said.
"Term limits are actually imposed to limit very good presidents. They were invented to ensure that a person would not remain in office merely because they were doing well.
Term limits are for good presidents; you do not need term limits for a poor president who will obviously be removed in an election."
The controversy underscores growing tensions within Zimbabwe's ruling elite and raises fears that the country could be heading toward another constitutional crisis if Zanu-PF presses ahead with the plan to extend Mnangagwa's rule beyond 2028.
Source - newzimbabwe
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