CCC leader Prof Ncube makes appointments

Citizens Coalition for Change President Professor Welshman Ncube has made the following appointment.

Ncube grabbed the movement dramatically through his proxy Sengezo Tshabangu from popular politician Nelson Chamisa.

It is suspected that Ncube and team intend to facilitate President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa’s 2030 term extension.

Mnangagwa has denied that he has ambitions to extend his rule beyond this current term. However, multiple calls from within Zanu-PF ranks and hints of possible constitutional changes to facilitate such a bid, sends out an entirely different message.

This double speak creates an impression that Zanu-PF’s focus is more vested on extending the longevity of its political reign than on the day-to-day governance of a country wrestling with enormous socio-economic challenges.

In July, Mnangagwa said that his retirement days are near. Mnangagwa said he intends to rest after his second term as Zimbabwe’s President comes to an end in 2028.

But the storyline is different for the Zanu-PF Harare Province who are seeking amendments to the Constitution to enable Mnangagwa to continue to lead Zimbabwe beyond 2028. There are already stirrings of a “Mnangagwa for 2030” campaign. Many Zanu-PF leaders and structures, including its Youth League and regional minister Ezra Chadzamira, have also expressed similar sentiments.

It is not in character for Mnangagwa to shy away from power. In all likelihood, by locating and centring the calls for a third term within the ranks of the party, rather than from the incumbent, is a clever and calculated strategy. It is public relations at its very best for it builds and spins a storyline of Mnangagwa as a humble leader who did not personally want to extend his term but will, in the end, do so on the back of demands from his party.

In a thought piece in Africa Report in February 2024, Farai Shawn Matiashe reflects on Zanu-PF’s two-thirds majority in Parliament following the 2023 general election and the resignation of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa.

Zwnews/ The African