PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has urged Zanu PF party supporters to respect the Constitution, amid calls for him to disregard it and vie for an illegal third term in 2028.
This was the closest Mnangagwa has been to addressing sloganeering by his allies encouraging him not to step down. He is currently serving his second and final presidential term.
The Constitution (Section 91) bars Mnangagwa from seeking a third term while any amendment cannot benefit him as the incumbent according to Section 328 (7).
Mnangagwa was speaking at Zanu PF's 379th ordinary session of the Politburo to mark the commencement of this year's National People's Conference being held in Bulawayo.
"Let me reiterate that constitutionalism, discipline, unity, patriotism, loyalty as well as hard, honest work remain indispensable values of our party, Zanu PF which must never be tampered with," said Mnangagwa.
His deputy Constantino Chiwenga, a long-time ally, is the obvious successor should Mnangagwa choose to respect the Zimbabwean Constitution.
Calls from Masvingo to have Mnangagwa at the helm of State and government up till 2030 have found resistance within the ruling party, with sources indicating that should he decide on that route his safety might not be guaranteed.
"We might not get to 2030 if Mnangagwa or his supporters continue pushing for his illegal third term. We might witness another military-led coup as those within the army have already chosen a side, and that side is Chiwenga's," said a source from within the party.
If Zimbabwe suffers another coup, it would be the second after the one that toppled late President Robert Mugabe in 2017.
ZPRA war veterans and a cross-section of women and youth associations in the party have declared their support for Chiwenga's ascendancy.
"Let it be clearly understood that Chiwenga is the leader the people of Zimbabwe are rallying behind, and we will not sit idly as rogue elements like John Paradza (Zanu PF deputy director for youth) attempt to tarnish his name and derail the course of justice and progress.
"Paradza and his Dadaya faction represent a minority desperate to cling to power through undemocratic means," said a grouping aptly named the general Chiwenga Voluntary Supporters Association.
