BREAKING NEWS: Former Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko Passes Away at 84

By Farai D Hove | ZimEye | Harare, Zimbabwe – Phelekezela Mphoko, the former Vice President of Zimbabwe who held a legitimate claim to the presidency following the late Robert Mugabe’s resignation, has died at the age of 84. His death was confirmed by presidential spokesperson George Charamba.

Mphoko served as Zimbabwe’s Vice President from 2014 until 2017. Following President Mugabe’s resignation in November 2017, constitutional procedures would have placed Mphoko, as the only remaining legitimate vice president at that time, in line to assume the presidency. However, these arrangements were never honored. Instead, Emmerson Mnangagwa, an expelled ZANU-PF politician who returned from South Africa, ascended to the presidency, assisted by elements within the Zimbabwean military led by General Constantino Chiwenga.

Critics and observers maintain that this sequence of events was an irregular transition of power, effectively sidelining Mphoko. The military intervention and the subsequent political maneuvers prevented the former vice president from taking over as head of state, despite what his supporters consider a lawful succession path.

Mphoko is survived by his wife and three children. His passing marks the end of a chapter in Zimbabwean politics still shrouded in questions about constitutional order, the role of the military in governance, and the legitimacy of the country’s leadership transition following Mugabe’s historic resignation.