With Robert Mugabe's political days numbered, the ruling ZANU-PF party has sacked him as leader. Its Central Committee says he must resign as president by noon Monday or impeachment proceedings will start.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Joe
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The central committee of Zimbabwe’s ruling ZANU-PF party on Sunday removed President Robert Mugabe from his post as party leader. The party also announced that it had appointed Emmerson Mnangagwa in his place.
Mugabe's deeply unpopular wife, Grace, was also thrown out of the party.
A day after the country erupted with joy at the prospect of an end to the Mugabe era, it is the first formal step that has been taken to remove him from office. The meeting comes ahead of a second round of talks between Mugabe and the army commander on finding a dignified end to the aged ruler's presidency.
ZANU-PF official Obert Mpofu, who chaired the meeting said, "(Mugabe's) wife and close associates have taken advantage of his frail condition to usurp power and loot state resources. Our people are demanding ... the recall of the president and first secretary of ZANU-PF from his position in the party."
Zimbabwean War Veterans leader Chris Mutsvangwa (R), arrives at a meetingImage: Reuters/P. Bulawayo
Chris Mutsvangwa, who led the campaign to get rid of Mugabe, said that the party meeting’s agenda also includes reinstating former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa and removing the president's wife, Grace Mugabe, as head of the ZANU-PF Women’s League.
"We are going all the way," Mutsvangwa told the Reuters news agency on his way into the meeting, also saying that he thinks Mugabe should just resign and leave the country. "He's trying to bargain for a dignified exit, but he should just smell the coffee and gap it."
The Central Committee said Mugabe must step down as president by noon on Monday, or impeachment proceedings would start when parliament resumes on Tuesday.
Support crumbles
Former Mugabe supporters are turning from the beleaguered nonagenarian in droves. The influential ZANU youth league issued a statement on Sunday calling on Mugabe to step down, and for his wife, Grace, to be thrown out of the party.
The Youth League has previously been extremely loyal to Mugabe, but now says he should resign "so that he can rest as the elderly statesman he is."
Impeachment set for next week
Zimbabwe's main opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change - Tsvangirai (MDC-T), has said it will "definitely" put in process a motion to impeach Mugabe, adding that there have been discussions with the ruling ZANU-PF party.
MDC-T party member Innocent Gonese told the Associated Press news agency, "If Mugabe is not gone by Tuesday, then as sure as the sun rises from the east, [the] impeachment process will kick in."
Departure talks with military
The Herald, a state-run newspaper in Zimbabwe, confirmed that Mugabe met with army leaders who seized power from him last week.
It is alleged that the military would prefer Mugabe to voluntarily resign for the sake of creating a veneer of legality in the leadership handover. There is speculation that Mugabe may be using whatever power he has left to try to preserve his legacy as one of the leaders of Africa’s liberation, or perhaps to protect himself and his family from prosecution.
The talks are believed to be going ahead without the South African delegation that was involved in the first round. South Africa’s President, Jacob Zuma, on Saturday described the negotiations as being in the "early days."
Next Tuesday, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) will discuss Zimbabwe's political crisis when it meets for a four-day summit in the Angolan capital, Luanda.
The week that changed Zimbabwe
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe was removed as the ZANU-PF party's leader after holding the post for 37 years. The party’s youth league, the military and his supporters also withdrew from backing Mugabe.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/B.Curtis
Mnangagwa, Grace Mugabe go head to head
In November 2018, Robert Mugabe dismissed his vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, after accusing him of "plotting a coup against the government." Some Zimbabweans feared Mugabe was grooming his wife, Grace Mugabe, to take over in the event of his death.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Njikizana
Chiwenga's warning
On November 13, 2017, General Constantino Chiwenga, commander of Zimbabwe's Defense Force, warned that the army could "step in" to save the country from political tension and economic crisis.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Njikizana
Tanks in Harare
Military and armored vehicles were seen at the outskirts of Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, on November 14, 2017. On the same day, the military also took over the state-run broadcaster ZBC.
Image: Reuters/P. Bulawayo
Mugabe safe in army hands
On November 15, 2017, Major General SB Moyo, the military spokesman, announced on the ZBC that Mugabe and his family were "safe and sound and their security was guaranteed." He said the military was targeting "criminals around" Mugabe who were "committing crimes that are causing social and economic suffering."
Image: Reuters/ZBC
A 'smiling' Mugabe meets Chiwenga
On November 16, 2017, General Constantino Chiwenga, along with other officials, was seen in military uniform meeting President Robert Mugabe (C) at the State House. It was reported that Mugabe was smiling as they both shook hands. However, the leaders of ZANU-PF announced that there was "no going back."
Image: Reuters/Zimpapers/J. Nyadzayo
Mugabe puts in a public appearance
After being placed under house arrest, Mugabe appeared publicly at a university graduation ceremony on November 17, 2017. Here, a military officer adjusts a chair for Mugabe, who is dressed in a blue-and-yellow academic gown, to sit on after arriving to preside over the ceremony. Mugabe, who was reportedly tired, was then caught falling asleep.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/B. Curtis
Zimbabweans call on Mugabe to go
On November 18, 2017, residents of the capital, Harare, held a protest with anti-Mugabe placards demanding the president's resignation. Veterans of the independence war, activists and ruling party leaders called publicly for Mugabe to be forced from office.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/Z. Auntony
Mugabe ousted from ZANU-PF leadership
Zimbabwean War Veterans leader Chris Mutsvangwa (R) arrived at a meeting of the ruling ZANU-PF party in Harare November 19, 2017. After hours of deliberation, the party announced that it had decided to fire Mugabe as leader of the party.
Image: Reuters/P. Bulawayo
Mugabe does not step down
Many expected that after being recalled as ZANU-PF party leader, President Mugabe would use his address to the nation resign with dignity. Zimbabweans were left shocked after the rambling speech made no reference to him stepping down. Mugabe now faces impeachment, with proceedings believed to be starting on Tuesday.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/Str
End of an era
Rather than face impeachment proceedings, Robert Mugabe prompted dancing in the streets of Harare when he resigned on November 22. "My decision to resign is voluntary on my part and arises from my concern for the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe and my desire for a smooth, non-violent transfer of power," the 93-year-old said in a letter.
Image: picture-alliance/AP/T. Mukwazhi
Euphoria in Harare
Supporters of Emmerson Mnangagwa celebrate the end of four decades under Mugabe. Mnangagwa was joined by cheering crowds after he returned to Zimbabwe from exile in neighboring South Africa. He is expected to be sworn in on November 24.
