Barely days after President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 3) Act, 2026 into law, ZANU PF Harare Province has begun pushing to extend his tenure beyond 2030 to 2037.
The latest call comes as the ruling party celebrates the enactment of the controversial constitutional amendment, which postpones Zimbabwe's next harmonised elections from 2028 to 2030, effectively extending the terms of the President, Members of Parliament and councillors by two years.
Speaking at a Constitutional Amendment Act No. 3 "Thank You" rally in Epworth over the weekend, ZANU PF Harare Province chairperson Godwills Masimirembwa said the province would table a resolution at the party's next conference seeking to retain Mnangagwa as party leader beyond 2030.
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"We still want him for an additional seven years, from 2030 to 2037. He must lead the party, that is what the party is saying," said Masimirembwa.
President Mnangagwa recently assented to the Constitutional Amendment Act No. 3, ushering in a raft of constitutional changes, including the postponement of the 2028 harmonised elections.
ZANU PF argues that the changes will allow the government to focus on implementing development programmes without the disruption caused by frequent elections.
However, critics argue it weakens constitutional safeguards.
Masimirembwa said Harare Province was already looking beyond the President's current extended tenure.
"It is of fundamental importance to the development of this country because now, constitutionally, the President will remain in office as President, Commander-in-Chief and Head of Government until 2030.
"He will also be able to complete Vision 2030, but for us as Harare Province, we look beyond 2030 to see what happens. The President has done extremely well for this country. We have heard and we have lived his mantra.
"The people are saying, 'What happens to him beyond 2030?' So the people of Harare, as we go into resolutions for the next conference, are saying His Excellency should remain the party President and First Secretary of ZANU PF at the 2030 congress," he said.
He added that Mnangagwa's liberation war credentials also justified his continued leadership.
"Remember also that he is still the senior surviving member of Chimurenga, the revolution that brought this country to Independence, so we still want him for an additional seven years. He must lead the party - that is what Harare is saying."
Meanwhile, opposition parties have filed applications at the Constitutional Court seeking to have the Constitutional Amendment Act No. 3 declared invalid, arguing that both its content and the process leading to its enactment violate the Constitution.
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