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<p>The change we are seeing in Zimbabwe means the country has a fresh opportunity to kick-start and rebuild the economy and reintegrate internationally.</p>


Reforming Zimbabwe’s economy will be painful – Former FinMin Biti

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<p>How will President Mugabe&#8217;s resignation as president of Zimbabwe affect foreign investors in the country? Judith Tyson, Research fellow at Overseas Development Institute joins CNBC Africa to discuss this.</p>


Building confidence key to revive Zimbabwe’s economy – Expert

<p><em>Enock C. Mudzamiri | University of South Africa</em></p>
<p>November 2017 will go down in the history of Zimbabwe as the beginning of the end of Robert Mugabe’s 37 year tyranny. A tumultuous week finally culminated in his resignation on November 21st. One cannot understate the widespread jubilation at the demise of Mugabe and his desire to create a dynasty for himself through his wife Grace.</p>
<div id="attachment_291647" style="width: 860px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-291647" class="wp-image-291647 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Zim-Military_GettyImages.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /><p id="caption-attachment-291647" class="wp-caption-text">Zimbabwe&#8217;s Commander Defense Forces General Constantino Guveya Chiwenga (C) speaks during a press conference at the Tongogara Barracks on November 20, 2017 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe&#8217;s Army chief Constantino Chiwenga said, on November 20, 2017, that progress had been made in talks towards an apparent deal over Mugabe&#8217;s exit. Chiwenga also said the president was in touch with Emmerson Mnangagwa, the ousted vice president whose sacking triggered the military takeover and Mugabe&#8217;s loss of power. Zimbabwe&#8217;s President Robert Mugabe came under increasing pressure to quit on November 20, 2017 as his ruling party said it would move to impeach him and the army revealed his likely successor would soon return to the country. / AFP PHOTO / Jekesai NJIKIZANA (Photo credit should read JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images)</p></div>
<p>But the optimism is misplaced because it doesn’t deal directly with the dearth of democracy in Zimbabwe.</p>
<p>First, contrary to popular sentiment that the coup was meant to usher in a new era of political liberalisation and democracy, the takeover is actually meant to deal with a succession crisis in Zanu-PF. The military made this clear when it said that it was dealing with criminals around Mugabe. And the party’s secretary for legal affairs Patrick Chinamasa indicated that removing Mugabe from the party’s Central Committee was an internal party matter.</p>
<p>Secondly, I would argue that the military resorted to a “smart coup” only after its preferred candidate to succeed Mugabe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, was fired from the party and government.</p>
<p>The way in which the military has gone about executing its plan upends any conventional understanding of what constitutes a coup d&#8217;etat. It’s a “smart coup” in the sense that the military combined the frustrations of a restive population, internal party structures and international sympathy to remove a sitting president. It thereby gained legitimacy for an otherwise partisan and unconstitutional political act – toppling an elected government.</p>
<p>This begs the question: Is the military now intervening for the collective good or for its own interests?</p>
<h2>Why the military intervened</h2>
<p>It is baffling to imagine how the military has suddenly become the champion of democracy and regime change in Zimbabwe.</p>
<p>It’s clear that what motivated the military commanders was a fear of losing their jobs and influence after their preferred successor was purged. They launched a preemptive strike against Mugabe to safeguard their own selfish interests as a military class and the future of their careers.</p>
<p>Given the symbiotic relationship between the Zimbabwean military and the ruling Zanu-PF party, it was inevitable that the top commanders would be embroiled in the party’s succession crisis. After all, the military has been the key lever behind the power of both Mugabe and his ruling Zanu-PF since 1980.</p>
<p>In the past they have acted as part of the Zanu-PF machinery, openly campaigning for Mugabe alongside other security agencies.</p>
<p>And they have played a key role in neutralising political opponents. Back in the 1980s the military was responsible for the massacre of thousands of civilians and Zapu supporters in Matebeleland. More than two decades later in 2008 they were responsible for the torture, death and disappearance of 200 opposition activists and the maiming of hundreds more.</p>
<p>In addition, the UN has implicated Mnangagwa and the generals in the illegal plundering of resources in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They have also been fingered in the disappearance of diamond revenues from Zimbabwe’s Marange diamond fields.</p>
<p>On top of this the military and Zanu-PF share a special relationship that has its roots in the liberation struggle. The Zimbabwe African National Union (Zanu) was the political wing of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (Zanla) during the liberation war. They therefore have vested interests in the survival of the party.</p>
<p>After independence, the relationship remained intact as the military became the guarantors of the revolution. Some of the same surviving commanders of Zanla are still senior high ranking officials. The commanders are also bona fide members of the ruling party and guarantors of Zanu-PF power.</p>
<p>The same securocrats are also members of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association. This quasi paramilitary group is an auxiliary association of the ruling party and has fiercely opposed Mugabe’s attempt to create a dynasty.</p>
<h2>Military must step aside</h2>
<p>Zimbabwe goes to the polls next July to choose a new president and parliament. The elections – if conducted in a credible way – will provide the next government with the legitimacy it needs to take the country out of its political and economic crises.</p>
<p>Now that Mugabe has resigned the hope is that the military will allow a genuinely democratic transition to take place. All political players, including opposition parties, would need to be incorporated into a broad-based transitional authority pending credible elections.</p>
<p>But for the elections to be credible, the transitional authority would need urgently to reform the electoral system. This would ensure Zimbabweans can freely and fairly choose their leaders. Without this, peace and prosperity will continue to elude Zimbabwe.<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87712/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />In the long run, the military would do well to get out of politics instead of continuing to view itself as “stockholders” in the country’s political affairs because of its liberation struggle credentials.</p>
<p>This article was originally published on The Conversation.</p>


Op-Ed: Zimbabwe beware: the military is looking after its own interests, not democracy

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<p>Natalie P. Jabangwe, CEO of EcoCash Zimbabwe  and YPO Member discusses the revolution the company has created in financial inclusion in Zimbabwe and what it would like to see from an Mnangagwa-led government.</p>


Rebuilding Zimbabwe: EcoCash CEO on what it needs from Mnangagwa

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<p>Ted Galante, Managing Director of the Zimbabwe Mortgage Company discusses his outlook for Zimbabwe under a Mnangagwa-led government.</p>


If you plan to invest in Zimbabwe now is the time to do your due diligence

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<p>The forced resignation of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe should be a lesson for other leaders on the African continent says Independent Analyst, Ronak Gopaldas. He joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Mugabe’s ouster a fresh wake-up call to tyrants – Analyst

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<p>According to reports, investor sentiment on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange has significantly improved since the takeover of power by the country’s military chiefs last week. All eyes are now firmly positioned on the markets and how they are set to perform in the coming weeks. Joining CNBC Africa for some clarity is Garikayi Munema, Executive Director at the Financial Securities Exchange.</p>


Zimbabwe Stock Exchange improves after military takeover

<p>Zimbabwe’s former vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is expected to be sworn in as president following the resignation of Robert Mugabe, will return home on Wednesday, ruling party ZANU-PF official Larry Mavhima told Reuters.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-291638 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Zimbabwe_Emmerson_GettyImages-RZ.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /></p>
<p data-reactid="40">Mavhima said Mnangagwa was expected to land in Zimbabwe at 1130 GMT, after he fled Zimbabwe in fear of his safety after being sacked earlier this month.</p>
<p data-reactid="41">Mugabe resigned as Zimbabwe’s president on Tuesday, a week after the army and his former political allies moved to end four decades of rule by a man once feted as an independence hero who became feared as a despot.</p>
<div class="Attribution_attribution_o4ojT" data-reactid="43">
<p class="Attribution_content_27_rw" data-reactid="44"><em>Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Writing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Joe Brock</em></p>
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Zimbabwe’s Mnangagwa to return home today – ZANU-PF official

<p>When Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe sacked his vice president in front of 12,000 baying party members in 2014, Emmerson Mnangagwa sat quietly in the crowd, a green baseball cap pulled low over his eyes.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" td-modal-image alignnone wp-image-291634 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Emmerson-Mnangagwa_-GettyImages-RZ.png" alt="" width="850" height="591" /></p>
<p data-reactid="46">The man who stood to gain most from the dismissal betrayed nothing through his expression and gentle clapping &#8211; a survival tactic honed during five decades of service to the mercurial Mugabe. His cap, however, spoke volumes.</p>
<p data-reactid="47">Emblazoned across its front, next to a portrait of Mugabe, were four words: “Indigenise, Empower, Develop, Employ” &#8211; a slogan of the ruling ZANU-PF party. That day, he became Mugabe’s official deputy.</p>
<p data-reactid="48">Mnangagwa, whose sacking from the post this month brought Zimbabwe’s political crisis to a head, is now poised to take over after Mugabe, 93, resigned on Tuesday, ending almost four decades of rule.</p>
<p data-reactid="50">Mnangagwa will be sworn in on Wednesday or Thursday, ZANU-PF’s legal secretary Patrick Chinamasa told Reuters. The party’s chief whip said Mnangagwa would serve the remainder of Mugabe’s term until the next election due by September 2018.</p>
<p data-reactid="51">But there are questions over how Mnangagwa will lead the country led by Mugabe since independence in 1980.</p>
<p data-reactid="52">In a statement issued from hiding on Tuesday, Mnangagwa said Zimbabweans from all walks of life had to work together to rebuild a shattered economy and deeply polarized society.</p>
<p data-reactid="53">“My desire is to join all Zimbabweans in a new era, where corruption, incompetence, dereliction of duty and laziness, social and cultural decadence is not tolerated,” he said.</p>
<p>“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.”</p>
<h3>CROCODILE</h3>
<p>The 75-year-old was one of Mugabe’s most trusted lieutenants, having been at his side in prison, during wartime and then in government. With his appointment in 2014 as Mugabe’s official deputy, Mnangagwa had appeared well set as the eventual successor to Africa’s oldest head of state.</p>
<p data-reactid="57">“There are no arguments around his credentials to provide strong leadership and stability, but there are questions over whether he can also be a democrat,” said Eldred Masunungure, a political science lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe.</p>
<p data-reactid="58">Speaking at the congress in 2014, Mnangagwa reinforced the message emblazoned on his headgear, announcing revisions to ZANU-PF’s constitution that backed “total ownership and control” of Zimbabwe’s natural resources.</p>
<p data-reactid="59">It was a key insight to the party’s direction as it contemplated life beyond Mugabe.</p>
<p data-reactid="60">“We will remain forever masters of our own destiny,” Mnangagwa said at the time, to cheers from the crowd.</p>
<p data-reactid="61">Along the way, Mnangagwa earned the nickname “Ngwena”, Shona for crocodile, an animal famed in Zimbabwean lore for its stealth and ruthlessness.</p>
<p data-reactid="62">He backed Mugabe’s economic nationalism, especially a drive to force foreign firms to hand majority stakes to local blacks, suggesting he may not be the pro-market pragmatist many investors were hoping for.</p>
<p>He has been in every administration since independence, holding posts as varied as minister of state security, defense and finance, as well as speaker of parliament.</p>
<h3>IN THE SHADOWS</h3>
<p data-reactid="65">Most controversially, he was in charge of internal security in the mid-1980s when Mugabe deployed a crack North Korean-trained brigade against rebels loyal to his rival Joshua Nkomo.</p>
<p data-reactid="66">Rights groups say 20,000 civilians, mostly from the Ndebele tribe, were killed. Mugabe denies genocide or crimes against humanity but has admitted it was a “moment of madness”.</p>
<p data-reactid="67">Mnangagwa’s role remains shrouded in mystery, typical of a political operator trained as a communist guerrilla in China in the 1960s and who always stayed in the shadows behind Mugabe.</p>
<p data-reactid="68">Secretive and insular, he prefers to operate under the radar, those in his inner circle say, and when pushed into a corner, resorts to jokes and trivia to avoid serious discussion.</p>
<p data-reactid="69">“I wouldn’t say he is deceptive but it’s fair to say his default position is to crack jokes and deflect uncomfortable questions by asking endless questions,” one member of parliament close to him said.</p>
<p data-reactid="70">“He is very conscious that his public image is that of a hard man but he is a much more complex personality &#8211; pleasant and an amazing story-teller,” the politician, also from Mnangagwa’s Midlands Province, told Reuters.</p>
<p data-reactid="71">Mnangagwa’s appointment as vice president came a day after his predecessor Joice Mujuru was fired for allegedly planning to topple Mugabe.</p>
<p data-reactid="72">Asked whether the purge would weaken the party, a smiling Mnangagwa said: “The revolution has a way of strengthening itself. It goes through cycles, this is another cycle where it rids itself of elements that had now become inconsistent with the correct line.”</p>
<p data-reactid="73"><strong>“</strong>I‘M <strong>THE BOSS”</strong></p>
<p data-reactid="74">Mnangagwa learnt his politics in prison in the 1960s after being sentenced to death for sabotage by British authorities. He was captured while in one of the earliest guerrilla units fighting white colonial rule in what was then Rhodesia.</p>
<p data-reactid="76">He was 19 and only spared the noose by a law prohibiting the execution of convicts under 21.</p>
<p data-reactid="77">After a decade in prison, often sharing a cell with Mugabe, Mnangagwa became personal assistant to the leader of the liberation struggle, and went on to head the guerrilla movement’s feared internal security bureau.</p>
<p data-reactid="78">In January, a photograph appeared in local media showing Mnangagwa enjoying drinks with a friend. In his hand was a large novelty mug emblazoned with the words: “I‘M THE BOSS.”</p>
<p data-reactid="79">To supporters of Mugabe, this bordered on treason. They suspected that Mnangagwa already saw himself in the leader’s shoes.</p>
<p>When Mugabe fired Mnangagwa as vice president this month for showing “traits of disloyalty”, he removed a possible successor who was also one of his last remaining liberation war comrades.</p>
<p>But relations had already cooled between the two men after suggestions by Mnangagwa’s allies in August that he had been poisoned by ice cream from a dairy owned by the Mugabes.</p>
<div class="Attribution_attribution_o4ojT" data-reactid="80">
<p class="Attribution_content_27_rw" data-reactid="81">Editing by James Macharia and Giles Elgood</p>
</div>


All eyes on the ‘Crocodile’ as Zimbabwe’s Mugabe resigns

<p>Robert Mugabe resigned as Zimbabwe’s president on Tuesday, shortly after parliament began an impeachment process to end his nearly four decades of rule.</p>
<div id="attachment_290963" style="width: 860px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-290963" class="wp-image-290963 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/GettyImages-Mugabe_RZ.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /><p id="caption-attachment-290963" class="wp-caption-text">Photo: Getty Images</p></div>
<p>Wild jubilation broke out among MPs when Mudenda told the House.</p>
<p data-reactid="43">The 93-year old clung on for a week after an army takeover and expulsion from his own ruling ZANU-PF party, which also told him to leave power.</p>
<p data-reactid="44">Wild celebrations broke out at a joint sitting of parliament when Speaker Jacob Mudenda announced Mugabe’s resignation and suspended the impeachment procedure.</p>
<p data-reactid="45">The origin of Mugabe’s sudden downfall lies in rivalry between members of Zimbabwe’s ruling elite over who will succeed him, rather than popular protests against his rule.</p>
<p data-reactid="46">The army seized power after Mugabe sacked ZANU-PF’s favorite to succeed him, Emmerson Mnangagwa, to smooth a path to the presidency for his wife Grace, 52, known to her critics as “Gucci Grace” for her reputed fondness for luxury shopping.</p>
<p data-reactid="47">Mnangagwa, a former security chief known as The Crocodile, is expected to take over as president.</p>


Zimbabwe’s President, Robert Mugabe resigns: Speaker of Parliament

<p>Zimbabwe’s parliament began an impeachment process against President Robert Mugabe on Tuesday that looks set to bring his domination of a country he has ruled since independence nearly four decades ago to an ignominious end.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-291214 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Robert-Mugabe_ZBC-Address_GettyImages.png" alt="" width="850" height="606" /></p>
<p data-reactid="39">In the last week, the 93-year old has clung on in the face of an army takeover that shattered his authority and expulsion from his own ruling ZANU-PF party, which also told him to leave power.</p>
<p data-reactid="41">Thousands of people have joined mass protests against him and calls to resign have come from many sides, including on Tuesday from the ruling party’s favorite to succeed him, Emmerson Mnangagwa.</p>
<p data-reactid="42">Parliament Speaker Jacob Mudenda said he received a motion to impeach and lawmakers would adjourn to a hotel to start the proceedings later on Tuesday. Thousands or people demonstrated outside parliament urging his resignation.</p>
<p data-reactid="43">Since the crisis began, Mugabe has been mainly confined to his lavish “Blue Roof” residence in the capital.</p>
<p data-reactid="44">Mugabe led Zimbabwe’s liberation war and is hailed as one of post-colonial Africa’s founding fathers and a staunch supporter of the drive to free neighbouring South Africa from apartheid in 1994.</p>
<p>But many say he has damaged Zimbabwe’s economy, democracy and judiciary by staying in power for too long and has used violence to crush perceived political opponents. The country faces a foreign exchange payments crisis and roaring inflation.</p>
<p data-reactid="46">South African President Jacob Zuma and his Angolan counterpart, Joao Lourenco, will travel on Wednesday to Zimbabwe in a fresh sign of diplomatic pressure, South Africa’s state broadcaster said.</p>
<p data-reactid="47">Mugabe held his weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday but only five ministers and the attorney general turned up. 17 others opted to attend a meeting to plan the impeachment.</p>
<p>“The people of Zimbabwe have spoken with one voice and it is my appeal to President Mugabe that he should take heed of this clarion call &#8230; to resign so that the country can move forward and preserve his legacy,” Mnangagwa said in a statement.</p>
<h3>SUCCESSION PLOT</h3>
<p data-reactid="56">The origin of Mugabe’s sudden downfall lies in rivalry between members of Zimbabwe’s ruling elite over who will succeed him, rather than popular protests against his rule.</p>
<p data-reactid="57">The army seized power because Mugabe sacked Mnangagwa as vice president this month to smooth a path to the presidency for his wife Grace, who is unpopular with many Zimbabweans because of her perceived lavish lifestyle.</p>
<p>Reuters reported in September that Mnangagwa was plotting to succeed Mugabe with army backing at the helm of a broad coalition.</p>
<p data-reactid="70">The plot posited an interim unity government with international blessing to allow for Zimbabwe’s re-engagement with the world. Its main aim was to stabilize its economy.</p>
<p data-reactid="71">The former vice president was a key lieutenant to Mugabe for decades and stands accused of participating in repression against Zimbabweans who challenged the leader.</p>
<p data-reactid="72">Mnangagwa said he has fled Zimbabwe because of a threat to his life after being purged from the ruling party. He said he had been in contact with Mugabe and invited to return but would not do so until his security could be guaranteed.</p>
<p data-reactid="74">Mnangagwa said his desire was to join all Zimbabweans in a “new era” that would rebuild the economy for the benefit of all.</p>
<p data-reactid="75">Zimbabwe’s top general Constantino Chiwenga said on Monday the takeover, dubbed “Operation Restore Legacy”, was progressing well. He said Mugabe and Mnangagwa had been in contact since Mugabe’s speech on Sunday in which he defied calls to step down.</p>
<p>In the draft impeachment motion, ZANU-PF said Mugabe is a “source of instability”, flouting the rule of law and presiding over an “unprecedented economic tailspin” in the last 15 years.</p>
<p>It also said Mugabe had abused his constitutional mandate to favor his wife Grace. On Saturday, hundreds of thousands took to the streets of Harare to celebrate the ruler’s impending fall.</p>
<div class="Attribution_attribution_o4ojT" data-reactid="76">
<p class="Attribution_content_27_rw" data-reactid="77">Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Angus MacSwan</p>
</div>


Zimbabwe’s parliament starts impeachment process against Mugabe

<p>Roger Southall | <em>University of the Witwatersrand</em></p>
<p>President Robert Mugabe’s endgame in Zimbabwe holds various lessons for his South African counterpart, Jacob Zuma, as the latter too, considers his prospects towards the end of his presidency. The first, obviously, is that while, from the pinnacle of power, a country’s president may feel the monarch of all he can survey, it is always possible that the blade of the guillotine is just around the corner.</p>
<div id="attachment_291455" style="width: 860px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-291455" class="wp-image-291455 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Mugabe_Zuma_GettyImages.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /><p id="caption-attachment-291455" class="wp-caption-text"><em>PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA &#8211; JUNE 10 (SOUTH AFRICA OUT): South African President Jacob Zuma meets with Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe on June 10, 2011 in Pretoria, South Africa. Mugabe visited Zuma to talk about various issues including the upcoming Zimbabwean elections. According to reports. Zuma&#8217;s advisor, Lindiwe Zulu, stated that &#8216;People want to see democracy. People need their voices to be heard. Those are the winds that are sweeping the continent, and people ignore them at their peril.&#8217; (Photo by Foto24/Gallo Images/Getty Images)</em></p></div>
<p>Accordingly, it is always prudent to keep at least two bags packed for a hasty exit: one full of suit, shirts, underwear and socks, another full of foreign currency (preferably dollars or Euros). You just never know how things might pan out, so it is best to be prepared.</p>
<p>Following the almost-coup, Mugabe has been in a stronger position than many African dictators before him because the African Union has in recent years become a lover of democracy and a hater of coups. It therefore now demands that changes of leadership must have at least a veneer of constitutionality.</p>
<p>This has always been the Zimbabwean military’s weak point during this past week of flirting with political power. Hence its insistence that, despite its take-over of the airwaves, State House and parliament, alongside its house-arrest of the president and his family, its actions are not a coup.</p>
<p>In turn, this has provided Mugabe with a considerable degree of wriggle room, which he has sought to exploit to the full. Indeed, it has remained his key bargaining chip, not least because the African Union does not want to be seen as party to the overthrow of a hero of African liberation.</p>
<h2>Explicit political actor</h2>
<p>Zuma will feel confident that whereas in Zimbabwe the army has long been deeply involved in the ruling party’s internal affairs and the wider political arena, the South African National Defence Force is not an explicit political actor. He stands in no fear of a military coup (or even a Zimbabwe-style non-coup). Yet he does have to worry about what happens within his political party, the African National Congress (ANC).</p>
<p>Even if his favoured candidate, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, were to win the party leadership at the ANC’s December congress, Zuma’s continuing as South African President might be seen as a political embarrassment. If strong contender Cyril Ramaphosa wins, even more urgent calls will be made from within the ANC for the him to be “recalled” because he will be viewed as an electoral liability.</p>
<p>It is a fair bet that, whoever wins, an excuse will be made for a delegation from the party leadership to visit the president and to ask him to stand down. Just ask former President Thabo Mbeki who was fired by his own ANC. If Zuma refuses to cooperate, then the ANC might turn to parliament, where enough ANC MPs might feel emboldened to vote with the opposition to dethrone him.</p>
<h2>Fighting for survival</h2>
<p>Like Mugabe, Zuma will be battling for a dignified exit. Even more urgently, he will be fighting for survival. In previous years, Mugabe may have feared the prospect of retribution for his sins, and would have been determined to secure immunity from prosecution.</p>
<p>Now, at 93, he is confident that once out of office he will be left in peace. He may or may not appreciate the irony that, unlike his country’s last white ruler Ian Smith, he will not be able to stay in Zimbabwe after he has been forced to stand down, but he will know that he has to leave.</p>
<p>Neither the army nor Zanu-PF will want him hanging around, fearing his ability to continue pulling strings. So off he must go, to South Africa, Dubai or Singapore (anywhere with a few decent shops for his shopaholic wife Grace). His major immediate concern then, we may presume, is safe passage and immunity for his family. We may further presume, that there is lots of money stashed away in foreign bank accounts to keep the crocodile from the door.</p>
<h2>Zuma’s tricky position</h2>
<p>Zuma is differently placed. If he loses the Presidency he stands in all sorts of dangers, not least of which is prosecution for past financial crimes and the prospect of his ending his days in prison. In other words, he has much more to bargain for, and he will be doing so from a considerably weaker position. Not least of his problems is that he is a lot younger than Mugabe, so could spend quite a few years in jail.</p>
<p>Zuma’s major strength is that, whoever wins the party leadership, the ANC will probably want to grant him immunity and get him out of the way, as otherwise they face the prospect of their former leader facing a corruption trial during the lead up to elections in 2019.</p>
<p>But for a start, there is no provision for presidential immunity in the constitution, and its grant would face a strong challenge in the courts. Furthermore, if the Gupta or other Zuma allies in the project of “state capture” were to be prosecuted, Zuma could face being dragged into court as a witness.</p>
<p>In short, Zuma will realise that it will make sense to hot-foot it out of the country, preferably to a comfortably authoritarian country which will turn down requests for extradition.</p>
<h2>The fickle people</h2>
<p>What Mugabe is learning now, and it is something of which Zuma should take good note, is that the people are an ungrateful lot, and are likely to turn against you just when you most need their support. Up till a week ago, it was presumed that Mugabe retained the backing of all who mattered in Zanu-PF and that he would again be its candidate for president at the next election. But now, like many a dictator, he is having to learn fast that the people no longer love him.</p>
<p>Past allies, like the war veterans, had already turned against him, repudiating his apparent bid for his wayward wife, Grace, to replace him. Zanu-PF Youth leader, Kudzai Chipanga, initially declared his willingness to “die for Mugabe” and labelled Major-General Constantino Chiwenga, the leader of the non-coup, a traitor when the army first intervened. After being locked up, he shamefacedly read out an abject apology, begging forgiveness, and pleading the inexperience of youth.</p>
<p>This has been followed by all 10 provincial organisations of Zanu-PF calling for Mugabe to go, and even encouraging ordinary people to join the marches being organised by opposition parties and civil society demanding his dismissal.</p>
<p>Zuma is too wily a politician not to know that once he loses the party presidency, his support base will drain away, and that he will become known as yesterday’s man. Yet like Mugabe, he will take comfort from the regional body, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), for there is nothing his fellow presidents dread more than the prospect of any one of their number facing impeachment.</p>
<p>He will also know that, unlike Mbeki, whose stature in Africa remains high, he has no viable future as a roving ex-president. Zuma will know that if he wants to enjoy his retirement in peace, he has to leave South Africa before he gets tangled up in court proceedings.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87774/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />His best option will be to grab those two suitcases, make a hasty exit and move in next door to Bob and Grace in Dubai.</p>
<p><em>This article was published on The Conversation.</em></p>


Op-Ed: Lessons for South Africa’s Jacob Zuma in Robert Mugabe’s misfortunes

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<p>Former Zimbabwean vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa is the latest addition to those demanding President Mugabe to resign.</p>


Zimbabwe’s black currency market stabilises on Grace Mugabe’s fall

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<p>Former Zimbabwean vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa is the latest addition to those demanding President Mugabe to resign. He is no stranger to politics or infamy.</p>


Zimbabwe has no money, the time is now to rectify it – Mortgage boss

<p><strong>PRESS STATEMENT BY CDE. EMMERSON DAMBUDZO MNANGAGWA</strong><br />
My attention has been drawn to the Press Statement issued by the Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, General Constantino Guveya Chiwenga. I can confirm that President Robert Gabriel Mugabe made contact with me and invited me to return home for a discussion on the current political events in the nation. I told the President that I would not return home now until I am satisfied of my personal security, because of the manner and treatment given to me upon being fired. Given the events that followed my dismissal on Monday 6th November 2017 at 4.00pm, my security details assigned to me and at my residency were immediately withdrawn. This was contrary to all the protocols that have exited in Zimbabwe to former State Vice Presidents of the Republic of Zimbabwe. Security personnel, who are friendly to me, warned me that plans were underfoot to eliminate me once arrested and taken to a police station. It was in my security interest to leave the country immediately.</p>
<p>In my contact with President Mugabe I told the President that the current political and constitutional crisis in the country is not a matter between him and myself but between the people of Zimbabwe and President Mugabe. The people of Zimbabwe have clearly spoken on this matter.</p>
<p>To me the voice of the people is the voice of God and their lack of trust and confidence in the leadership of President Mugabe has been expressed. Several groups including students, general workers, opposition party members, vendors, religious organizations and ordinary citizens led by our war veterans, our party members in Zanu PF, civic society, and all races of colour and creed in Zimbabwe clearly demonstrated without violence their insatiable desire to have the resignation of His Excellency, Cde Robert Gabriel Mugabe. This was done on the following dates:<br />
➢The <a href="http://cnbc.africa/trending/forbes-africa/2017/11/18/history-making-scenes-zimbabwes-anti-mugabe-protest/">mass solidarity demonstrations</a> led by the War Veterans on Saturday 18th November 2017,<br />
➢The fully legally constituted Special Session of the CC culminating in <a href="http://cnbc.africa/news/political/2017/11/19/mugabe-ousted-from-zanu-pf/">resolutions</a> which were taken by the Session on Sunday 19th November 2017,<br />
➢and the resolution by the <a href="http://cnbc.africa/news/southern-africa/2017/11/20/ex-zambian-leader-arrives-zimbabwe-convince-mugabe-go-source/">ZANU PF Parliamentary Caucus</a> on Monday 20th November 2017 to institute impeachment proceedings against the President are testimony that the President has lost the trust and confidence of the people of Zimbabwe.</p>
<p>The people of Zimbabwe have spoken with one voice and it is my appeal to President Mugabe that he should take heed of this clarion call by the people of Zimbabwe to resign so that the country can move forward and preserve his legacy. The ZDF Intervention through the Motto code named “OPERATION RESTORE LEGACY” ​is aimed at preserving the ethos of our struggle against British Colonialism which was led by the late Dr. J M N Nkomo, Cde Robert Mugabe and many others.</p>
<p>This fight included a struggle for social and economic empowerment which is all but lost now due to reasons clearly stated in the Impeachment Call by Zanu Pf Members of Parliament. The legacy or our struggle to unite the land with the people and the people with their land championed by our war  veterans and our people defended by the gallant fighters of the Defence Forces, Civil Servants, The Judiciary and our Government can be saved if His Excellency choses to do the right thing. His Excellency, Cde Robert Gabriel Mugabe has always said that if the people don&#8217;t want him he will leave office, now that they have spoken he must now ACCEPT the will of the people and resign. President Mugabe in his televised State of the Nation Address admitted to a number of a latent disregard to the interest of the people and dereliction of duty, surely after making such an admission common sense dictates that it should have been followed by an apology and immediate resignation to save the legacy of our struggle.</p>
<p>As promised in my last communication I will be returning home as soon as the right conditions for security and stability prevail. I look forward to returning home soon and to join in the struggle for the economic revival of our country which is so endowed with Agriculture, Industrial and Commerce, and Mining Opportunities and with a rich human resource bedrock to support our endeavours. My desire is to join all Zimbabweans in a NEW ERA where corruption, incompetency, dereliction of duty and laziness, social and cultural decadency is not tolerated. 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.</p>
<p>In my conversation with the president I told him that there are two options, that is (a) to cooperate in the current negotiations with comrades from the defence forces for a peaceful resolution of this crisis, which would result in the preservation of his legacy. (b) that if he continues to dig in, in defiance of the will of the people, he might suffer humiliation because definitely the will of the people will prevail against one person. He requested me to come to State House, and l replied that l was out of the country, and that he had already removed my status as the vice president of the country, as such I had no status, however, l can only come at the invitation of my colleagues in the party and of the defence forces, when they feel that my security is guaranteed.</p>
<p>I am aware that parliament intends to impeach the president. Parliament is the ultimate expression of the will of the people outside an election and in my view is expressing national sentiment by implementing the Impeachment Proceedings therefore talks between myself and the President cannot supercede the expression and fundamental rights of fellow Zimbabweans. l am aware that the nation at large has been protesting against the incumbent and I believe they have a right to protest in terms of our constitution. I am also aware that the party has passed resolutions in terms of the party constitution. They have a right to do so. I will not stand in the way of the people and my party. I will go along with the wishes of my party and general population.</p>
<p>In conclusion, the destiny of our country is in the hands of our people and His Excellency must heed the call of the people to resign.<br />
God bless Zimbabwe.<br />
Emmerson​ ​Dambudzo​ ​Mnangagwa</p>
<p>http://cnbc.africa/news/political/2017/11/18/mugabe-wont-step-grace-wont-step-says-cabinet-minister-nephew/</p>


Former Vice-President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa shares his thoughts on what has transpired

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<p>Robert Mugabe&#8217;s refusal to even acknowledge his party&#8217;s desire to have him retired, suggests he knows something we don&#8217;t. Is it constitutional to recall a president of a movement without affording that president the right to face his accusers?</p>


Mugabe defies the noon deadline

<p>Chris Saunders |<em>University of Cape Town</em></p>
<p>Soon after Zimbabwe’s army confined President Robert Mugabe to his palatial Harare home this week – allegedly for his safety – it was announced in Luanda that Angola’s new President, João Lourenço, had relieved Isabel dos Santos of her position as head of the state-run oil company Sonangol.</p>
<div id="attachment_290963" style="width: 860px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-290963" class="wp-image-290963 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/GettyImages-Mugabe_RZ.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /><p id="caption-attachment-290963" class="wp-caption-text">Photo: Getty Images</p></div>
<p>While there may not be any direct connection between these two events, they suggest some intriguing comparisons. In both countries ruling families seem to have failed to secure themselves in power.</p>
<p>When Mugabe, as leader of the Zimbabwean African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF), became ruler of Zimbabwe at independence in April 1980, José Eduardo dos Santos was already President of Angola. He had succeeded to that position after the death of Agostinho Neto in September 1979.</p>
<p>Dos Santos had to deal with external intervention and over two decades of civil war , during which he ruled dictatorially. Mugabe, despite a facade of constitutionalism and regular elections, also became increasingly dictatorial. He abandoned adherence to the rule of law and his country’s economy collapsed. Angola became notorious for the scale of the corruption linked especially to its oil riches. Zimbabwe went from bread-basket to basket-case. With the great majority of the people of both countries living in dire poverty, Dos Santos flew to Europe when he needed medical attention, while Mugabe went to Singapore.</p>
<p>Though Dos Santos was probably as reluctant as Mugabe to give up power, he decided to quit as president of the country and try to retain influence through the ruling party and members of his family. Mugabe tried to impose his wife on his party as his chosen successor and then to cling on to his positions even when the army took effective control of his country.</p>
<p>Given recent developments in Luanda and Harare, it would seem that neither of these two old men have succeeded in securing their family dynasties.</p>
<h2>Dos Santos’s succession plan</h2>
<p>By 2016, suffering health problems that took him to Spain for treatment, Dos Santos announced that he would step down as president of Angola and he approved his Minister of Defence, João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço as his successor.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-290966 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Angola_Joao-Lourenço_Dos-Santos_GettyImages.png" alt="" width="850" height="566" /></p>
<p>Following the victory of the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) in the general election held in August this year, Lourenço took over as president in September. But Dos Santos remained president of the MPLA, and clearly expected Lourenço to look after his interests and that of his family, who had become enormously wealthy.</p>
<p>From the action Lourenço has now taken against Dos Santos’ billionaire daughter Isabel, it would seem that he’s becoming his own man. It appears he wishes to distance himself from the Dos Santos family, which for many Angolans is associated with corruption on a vast scale.</p>
<p>The London-educated Isabel has proved herself to be a very capable businesswoman, and though the Angolan economy has been suffering because of low oil-prices, on top of massive corruption, it’s unlikely she was sacked to bring in a better chief executive to run the country’s most important state owned company. There is talk in Luanda that Isabel’s brother, José Filomeno dos Santos, will be relieved of his position as head of the country’s large Sovereign Wealth Fund and that his father, the former president of the country, will be replaced as president of the ruling party, though that may have to wait until a party congress is held.</p>
<h2>Mugabe’s succession plan</h2>
<p>In Zimbabwe Mugabe has sought to arrange that his wife will succeed him. But Gucci Grace and Robert made the mistake of trying to ensure this by firing Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa.</p>
<p>Though at the time of writing, the 93-year-old Mugabe remains president both of the country and of the ruling Zanu-PF party, it’s widely expected that he will soon be relieved of both positions, probably by Mnangagwa, with the assistance of the army.</p>
<h2>Changes for the better?</h2>
<p>New leadership in Angola and Zimbabwe will have an impact on the region as a whole.</p>
<p>Given Mnangagwa’s record as a long serving member of government in Zimbabwe, and his involvement in the mass killing of Ndebele in the early 1980s, it is hardly likely that he will emerge as a champion of democracy.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-291244 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Emmerson-Mnangagwa_GettyImages.png" alt="" width="850" height="565" /></p>
<p>In Angola, Lourenço is still finding his feet as head of government.<br />
But if we are witnessing the end of an era in which dictators stayed in power for decades and tried to secure their continuing influence through their families, and if we are seeing the diminishing importance of liberation movements turned political party, this must be good not only for Angola and Zimbabwe but for the southern African region as a whole.It is therefore unrealistic to hope that either country will soon move from decades of repressive rule and lack of transparency to greater constitutionalism and closer adherence to the rule of law.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87689/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />It should also hold lessons for those who rule in neighbouring countries.</p>
<p>This article was originally published on The Conversation.</p>


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