Mnangagwa has captured the Presidency through Misheck Sibanda

In the African society, morality demands that we protect the elderly from abuse for age makes them vulnerable. In the Zimbabwean case the opposite is true especially when it pertains to Mugabe.

The Citizen has suffered because of Mugabe's errors of both commission and omission. The temptations are that of celebrating his vulnerability, his failure and even prophecies of his demise.

We have heard stories of people who take advantage of the aged forcing them to sign documents before they die for the ultimate benefit of a related estate.

This is an old trick which was written even in ancient fiction stories but more vividly the Christian will remember the biblical story of Jacob and how he tricked his father to get the blessing.

Then there is a man named Dambudzo Emerson Mnangagwa who is taking advantage of Mugabe's age which in fact is a couple of years less than a century.

While it is not our business to discuss whoever gets Mugabe's blessing the Jacob way, our concern is solely located in the fact that the presidency as a matter of fact is a public office which must service the people of Zimbabwe.

It is an office that spends the highest amounts of tax payers' money, investing such kinds of money to a narrow personal agenda becomes somewhat insane and unacceptable.

Recent developments have seen Mnangagwa having his way after arm twisting persons in the presidency, some who voluntarily serve his factional agenda.

Reports in the Standard of the 17th of September 2017 indicate that the gazetted appointment of Adv Ray Goba as the substantive Prosecutor General was not done above board with Dr Misheck Sibanda accused to be at the centre of the mischief.

Mugabe also signed into law the first amendment of the constitution which is a subject of legal contestation, normally Mugabe would wait for the contestation to be over before proceeding. He would rather arm twist the adjudicators to rule in his favour.

The stance displayed in this case is certainly not Mugabe's style, it smells external influence, the citizen would know that the amendment is a Lacoste project meant to help the faction control the judiciary just in case the acerbic succession fights spill into the courts.  

And then there are recent electoral shenanigans which include proclamation number 6 of 2017 and Statutory Instrument 117 of 2017 made in terms of section 2 of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act.

The PDP is aware that Mnangagwa is an unpopular and unelectable individual who is so desperate to have an early election just to ride on the Mugabe factor.

He is therefore pushing to have an election called through extra-legal ways; our concern is that this will ultimately result in a disputed outcome due to the irregularities born out of ZEC's unpreparedness. In any case the timing of an election is a constitutional issue unless if Mnangagwa is contemplating pulling another amendment.

The People's Democratic Party urges all those involved in capture to desist from criminal acts meant to serve a narrow self-aggrandisement agenda.

Those in the presidency must remember they are civil servants who must be guided by the dictates of the law set out in chapters 9 and 10 of the constitution; these provisions guide the conduct of public servants.