News / National
Zimbabwe army to veto Mnangagwa Presidency
22 May 2015 at 09:33hrs | Views
Hardline military and intelligence chefs are allegedly going to veto, Vice President, Emmerson Mnangagwa's safe passage into attaining power, as President Robert Mugabe's successor, The Telescope News reported.
According to unused and deliberately left out material from a book on Zimbabwe's politics, that has since been published (2014) by an American journalist (name withheld, as the scribe's work is in the process of being adapoted into a possible feature film), if push comes to shove, the country's high ranking security officials are reportedly prepared, to decree Mnangagwa as the next leader, in a bid to protect themselves and gain clemency from prosecution at the International Criminal Court (ICC), over human rights abuses during Mugabe's three and a half decades in power.
Mnangagwa, is thought to be better placed to negotiate a deal for the generals, the information gathered during the Government of National Unity (GNU) formed in 2009 and from that time's administration political sources shows.
The revelation comes on the backcloth of former finance minister and MDC Renewal secretary general, Tendai Biti, this week calling for Mugabe and his inner circle to face the Hague for political and economic crimes.
"They are not fit to govern this country. They must be prosecuted," said Biti, who is back in the country from the USA.
"The military is going to act, and they will act fast in ensuring that the defence minister (Emmerson Mnangagwa) succeeds President Robert Mugabe, it's not a secret anymore," reads part of an interview an MDC minister, with one of the security portfolio ministries gave. "It is his ministry that has resisted security sector reforms, for obvious reasons. Few people in this country, are aware that the defence ministry is a critical center of power, which does the bidding of the Joint Operations Command (JOC), this is where the real political power is concentrated. I think the minister is unlikely to stage an army coup, but a political one through Zanu-PF structures backed by the military top brass. Mugabe is unlikely to be jailed due to his advanced age, but his top officials are not immune from the ICC. I have credible information, that the minister shall be installed as Muagbe's successor, so he could get guarantees from an opposition government, to protect the outgoing status quo from the Hague."
Zanu-PF insiders yesterday, said Mnangagwa and his closet backers in the military want to give the impression, that the race to succeed Mugabe is still open, yet it was a closed chapter decided as early as May 2008.
"I expect foreign journalists to get it wrong, not local ones when it comes to the succession issue," said a Politburo member who often provides reliable details about the closed door developments in the party. "Mnangagwa is not my piece of cake, but we shall have to make do with him, because he has this whole thing figured out. Those opposing him are using the Zanu-PF Constitution, which states that an extraordinary Congress must be convened to elect a successor should it be necessary, and are banking on the First Lady to forward their agenda. Unfortunately Grace Mugabe has no power base, apart from being in close proximity to her husband. They should pray that her health does not fail her, otherwise they are doomed. Mnangagwa on the other hand has the support of the security establishment, that is enough to win power. Forget about winning minds and hearts of party members, as some have been saying."
Prominent opposition MDC-T legislator, Eddie Cross, has also made the startling disclosure, that Mnangagwa is a step away from becoming president, adding that Zimbabwe has already gone through a bloodless coup since late 2014.
Cross made the remarks, during an interview in February with the Kenya Citizen TV ( see video below starting from 17:08 – 19:47).
"We've been through a political coup in the last six months," said Cross during the breakfast interview in Kenya. "Mujuru was the vice president for 10 years, and was clearly the most popular politician in Zanu. In fact we in the opposition, in the MDC regarded Mujuru as our only real opposition in a democratic sense. We feared that she would become candidate for Zanu, because she held some popular sway in the country. We always wanted Mugabe to be the candidate against us because he's least popular, and has no pull anymore."
"But a man called Mnangagwa……has made a determined bid for power, and as part of that bid, the first thing he had to do was to destroy Mujuru, which he did. We call him the crocodile, and you know if a crocodile is threatened, he goes underwater you don't see him. The next time you see him it's too late. Well when Mujuru saw the crocodile coming it was too late, and she has been eliminated.
"………..The reality is that Mnangagwa has become senior vice president, and therefore constitutionally, and politically he will assume the presidency, should the president die or be incapacitated. I think what's happening right now, is that Mugabe is handing authority to run the state, not to take over the presidency, but to run the state operationally to Mnangagwa. I think that process will be completed by April (last month)."
The Telescope News, understands that China is now intimately involved with preparing and supporting Mnangagwa all the way.
Mnangagwa yesterday told a visiting Chinese delegation that China remains Zimbabwe's preferred investor.
Apart from Mnangagwa, the floodgates to succeed Mugabe have now widely opened with former Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial chairman, Temba Mliswa, sensationally claiming that, Zanu-PF political commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere, is now also interested in becoming head of state.
Mliswa claimed Kasukuwere was setting himself up for high office, after holding a clandestine meeting with South African President Jacob Zuma, while he was still a deputy minister, it was reported.
According to unused and deliberately left out material from a book on Zimbabwe's politics, that has since been published (2014) by an American journalist (name withheld, as the scribe's work is in the process of being adapoted into a possible feature film), if push comes to shove, the country's high ranking security officials are reportedly prepared, to decree Mnangagwa as the next leader, in a bid to protect themselves and gain clemency from prosecution at the International Criminal Court (ICC), over human rights abuses during Mugabe's three and a half decades in power.
Mnangagwa, is thought to be better placed to negotiate a deal for the generals, the information gathered during the Government of National Unity (GNU) formed in 2009 and from that time's administration political sources shows.
The revelation comes on the backcloth of former finance minister and MDC Renewal secretary general, Tendai Biti, this week calling for Mugabe and his inner circle to face the Hague for political and economic crimes.
"They are not fit to govern this country. They must be prosecuted," said Biti, who is back in the country from the USA.
"The military is going to act, and they will act fast in ensuring that the defence minister (Emmerson Mnangagwa) succeeds President Robert Mugabe, it's not a secret anymore," reads part of an interview an MDC minister, with one of the security portfolio ministries gave. "It is his ministry that has resisted security sector reforms, for obvious reasons. Few people in this country, are aware that the defence ministry is a critical center of power, which does the bidding of the Joint Operations Command (JOC), this is where the real political power is concentrated. I think the minister is unlikely to stage an army coup, but a political one through Zanu-PF structures backed by the military top brass. Mugabe is unlikely to be jailed due to his advanced age, but his top officials are not immune from the ICC. I have credible information, that the minister shall be installed as Muagbe's successor, so he could get guarantees from an opposition government, to protect the outgoing status quo from the Hague."
Zanu-PF insiders yesterday, said Mnangagwa and his closet backers in the military want to give the impression, that the race to succeed Mugabe is still open, yet it was a closed chapter decided as early as May 2008.
"I expect foreign journalists to get it wrong, not local ones when it comes to the succession issue," said a Politburo member who often provides reliable details about the closed door developments in the party. "Mnangagwa is not my piece of cake, but we shall have to make do with him, because he has this whole thing figured out. Those opposing him are using the Zanu-PF Constitution, which states that an extraordinary Congress must be convened to elect a successor should it be necessary, and are banking on the First Lady to forward their agenda. Unfortunately Grace Mugabe has no power base, apart from being in close proximity to her husband. They should pray that her health does not fail her, otherwise they are doomed. Mnangagwa on the other hand has the support of the security establishment, that is enough to win power. Forget about winning minds and hearts of party members, as some have been saying."
Cross made the remarks, during an interview in February with the Kenya Citizen TV ( see video below starting from 17:08 – 19:47).
"We've been through a political coup in the last six months," said Cross during the breakfast interview in Kenya. "Mujuru was the vice president for 10 years, and was clearly the most popular politician in Zanu. In fact we in the opposition, in the MDC regarded Mujuru as our only real opposition in a democratic sense. We feared that she would become candidate for Zanu, because she held some popular sway in the country. We always wanted Mugabe to be the candidate against us because he's least popular, and has no pull anymore."
"But a man called Mnangagwa……has made a determined bid for power, and as part of that bid, the first thing he had to do was to destroy Mujuru, which he did. We call him the crocodile, and you know if a crocodile is threatened, he goes underwater you don't see him. The next time you see him it's too late. Well when Mujuru saw the crocodile coming it was too late, and she has been eliminated.
"………..The reality is that Mnangagwa has become senior vice president, and therefore constitutionally, and politically he will assume the presidency, should the president die or be incapacitated. I think what's happening right now, is that Mugabe is handing authority to run the state, not to take over the presidency, but to run the state operationally to Mnangagwa. I think that process will be completed by April (last month)."
The Telescope News, understands that China is now intimately involved with preparing and supporting Mnangagwa all the way.
Mnangagwa yesterday told a visiting Chinese delegation that China remains Zimbabwe's preferred investor.
Apart from Mnangagwa, the floodgates to succeed Mugabe have now widely opened with former Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial chairman, Temba Mliswa, sensationally claiming that, Zanu-PF political commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere, is now also interested in becoming head of state.
Mliswa claimed Kasukuwere was setting himself up for high office, after holding a clandestine meeting with South African President Jacob Zuma, while he was still a deputy minister, it was reported.
Source - The Telescope News
