By Keerthana Chavaly
Zimbabwe has been embroiled in political uncertainty that will result in a more-than-likely shift in power soon after a military coup that took place last week. The countrys President, Robert Mugabe, may soon step down or be impeached from his office.
Zimbabweans want Robert Mugabe to step down
Emmerson Mnangagwa, the former Vice-President and close associate of Robert Mugabe, has sought the removal of 93-year old Mugabe from power, calling him to accept the will of the people.
He also stated, Mugabe has always said that if the people dont want him he will leave office, now that they have spoken he must now accept the will of the people and resign,. Thousands of protesters in Harare called the president to step down.
Mnangagwa: The instigator
Mnangagwa, it is widely held, instigated the coup that seeks to remove Mugabe from office. He was in exile in the beginning of November after he was stripped of his position of vice-president by the ruling party, Zanu-PF and supporters of Mugabes wife, Grace Mugabe. It is alleged that Robert Mugabe is extremely corrupt and that he let his wife abuse power vested in the constitution.
According to The Guardian, In a written statement, which gave no clue to his whereabouts, Mnangagwa said he had fled Zimbabwe after he was warned by security officials that plans were underfoot to eliminate me. He also said of the future of Zimbabwe, In that new Zimbabwe it is important for everyone to join hands so that we rebuild this nation to its full glory. This is not a job for Zanu PF alone but for all people of Zimbabwe.
Will Mugabe be impeached?
Robert Mugabe was called to quit office by 12 noon on Monday but he instead called for a cabinet meeting on Tuesday morning. While there has been a show of overwhelming support for his resignation and removal for office, he unexpectedly refused to give up his post and instead addressed citizens in a speech on television, telling people to avoid bitterness or revengefulness, which would not make us any better Zimbabweans.
The Guardian further reports, It is unclear how long the procedure to impeach the president might take but it is likely to last several days. Both houses of the Zimbabwean parliament will have to sit at least twice, with the impeachment motion also going to a committee of senators. If it is passed, Mugabe, who as president is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces, would then be reduced to the status of any other citizen.
Featured Image Source: Al Jazeera English on VisualHunt / CC BY-SA