By A Correspondent
Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa has dismissed a report published by NewsDay, which indicated that he is attempting to extend his presidency beyond 2028 by using unofficial structures outside of the ruling Zanu PF party framework.
In a statement issued on Wednesday evening, the Office of the President and Cabinet labeled the article as misleading and defamatory…
“The Office of the President and Cabinet expresses very deep concern about a slanderous story in today’s NewsDay, titled ‘Mnangagwa turns to parallel structures’.”
The article, according to the statement, falsely suggests that President Mnangagwa is attempting to breach the country’s Constitution by extending his term of office through unapproved means.
The report also implied that the President was enlisting “parallel structures” outside Zanu PF to achieve this unconstitutional goal. “The article falsely and maliciously creates the impression that the State President, His Excellency Dr ED Mnangagwa, is hell-bent on breaching the National Constitution by extending his term limit ‘via the back door,’ beyond what is provided for under the country’s supreme law,” the statement continued.
In response to the NewsDay report, the Office also denied claims of disunity within Zanu PF and the security forces, calling them baseless and divisive. “NewsDay imputes disharmony and disquiet within the ruling ZANU PF, and in security structures, as a result,” the statement noted.
It emphasized that these allegations were harmful to national unity and sought to tarnish the President’s reputation.
The President has repeatedly assured the public that he has no intention of serving beyond his constitutionally mandated term.
“Repeatedly, the President has been on public record stating and re-stating in person that he has no intention or ambition to serve beyond the term which the National Constitution mandates for the Presidency,” the statement reaffirmed. “The local media, including NewsDay, have covered his pronouncements which remain un-rescinded and unchanged to this day.”
The Office of the President suggested that NewsDay’s article was part of a deliberate attempt to tarnish the President’s image and create unnecessary alarm. “The Office can only surmise