Constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku has cautioned that opponents of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s possible term extension will have to wait until Zanu PF formally starts the legal process to amend the Constitution before mounting any court challenge.
Speaking to the BBC, Madhuku said that while the talk of extending Mnangagwa’s tenure to 2030 was politically charged and not in the national interest, there is currently no legal action anyone can take.
“There’s nothing to take to court until they implement all the legal processes,” he explained.
Madhuku stressed that attempting to change the Constitution to suit one person’s ambitions undermines democratic principles and only serves the personal and political interests of the president and his inner circle.
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“Changing the Constitution to remove or extend terms of office for the President is not in the national interest … it only serves President Mnangagwa and those around him,” he said.
He added that Zanu PF itself is divided over the proposal but often mistakes the loudest voices at conferences for consensus.
“They just make noise at their conference, and the loudest noise becomes what they then call a resolution,” Madhuku observed.
The remarks follow Zanu PF’s annual conference in Mutare, where delegates endorsed a proposal to extend Mnangagwa’s term by two years, potentially keeping him in power until 2030. Justice Minister and Zanu PF legal secretary Ziyambi Ziyambi has since confirmed that the party has instructed the government to begin drafting the necessary constitutional amendments.
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