HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe resigned as president Tuesday after 37 years in power, as parliament began impeachment proceedings against him.
“My decision to resign is voluntary on my part and arises from my concern for the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe and my desire for a smooth, non-violent transfer of power,” said Mugabe in his letter which was read out in parliament, sparking cheers and dancing.
Cars began honking horns and people cheered in the streets, as the news spread like wildfire across the capital, Harare.
Mugabe, who had been the world’s oldest head of state at 93, said that proper procedures should be followed to install new leadership.
Mugabe’s resignation brought an end to the impeachment proceedings brought by the ruling ZANU-PF party after its Central Committee voted to oust the president as party leader and select recently fired Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa as his replacement, a move that eventually could lead to Mnangagwa becoming head of state. Currently in exile, Mnangagwa served for decades as Mugabe’s enforcer, with a reputation for being astute and ruthless, more feared than popular.
Before the resignation, crowds rallied outside Parliament, dancing and singing. Some people placed photos of Mugabe in the street so that cars would run over them. Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai of the MDC party said the culture of the ruling party “must end” and everyone must put their heads together and work toward free and fair elections.
Earlier Tuesday, Mnangagwa said in a statement that Mugabe should acknowledge the nation’s “insatiable desire” for a leadership change and resign immediately.
Mnangagwa added to immense pressure on Mugabe to quit after nearly four decades in power, during which he evolved from a champion of the fight against white minority rule into a figure blamed for a collapsing economy, government dysfunction and human rights violations.
“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 and resign forthwith so that the country can move forward and preserve his legacy,” Mnangagwa said in his statement, after more than a week of silence.
Mnangagwa, who fled the country and has not appeared in public during the past week’s political turmoil, said Mugabe had invited him to return to Zimbabwe “for a discussion” on recent events. However, he said he will not return for now, alleging that there had been plans to kill him at the time of his firing.
“I will be returning as soon as the right conditions for security and stability prevail,” said Mnangagwa, who has a loyal support base in the military. “Never should the nation be held at ransom by one person ever again, whose desire is to die in office at whatever cost to the nation.”
Zimbabwe’s polarizing first lady, Grace Mugabe, had been positioning herself to succeed her husband, leading a party faction that engineered Mnangagwa’s ouster. The prospect of a dynastic succession alarmed the military, which confined Mugabe to his home last week and targeted what it called “criminals” around him who allegedly were looting state resources — a reference to associates of the first lady.
Mnangagwa was targeted by U.S. sanctions in the early 2000s for undermining democratic development in Zimbabwe, according to the Atlantic Council, a U.S.-based policy institute. However, J. Peter Pham, an Africa expert at the council, noted that some Zimbabwean opposition figures have appeared willing to have dialogue with Mnangagwa in order to move the country forward and that the international community should consider doing the same.
“We’re not saying whitewash the past, but it is in the interests of everyone that Zimbabwe is engaged at this critical time,” Pham said in a statement.
Regional leaders continued efforts to find a solution to the political turmoil, with South Africa’s state-run broadcaster reporting that the presidents of South Africa and Angola would travel to Zimbabwe on Wednesday to meet with “stakeholders” in the political crisis, including Mugabe and the military.
Impeachment proceedings began days after huge crowds surged through the capital, Harare, to demand that Mugabe quit. The ruling party had instructed government ministers to boycott a Cabinet meeting that Mugabe called for Tuesday morning at State House, the president’s official residence, and instead attend a meeting at party headquarters to work on the impeachment.
It was not clear how long the impeachment process could take. The ruling party has said Mugabe could be voted out as early as Wednesday but some analysts believe the impeachment process could take weeks and would, if conducted properly, allow Mugabe to make a case in his defense.
Mnangagwa called for unity and appeared to embrace the prospect of taking over power.
“I will not stand in the way of the people and my party,” he said.
Mugabe’s exit is good news. But Mnangagwa seems like more of the same – a ruthless “strong man” leader credibly accused of very serious human rights violations.
If he comes to power, and governs as his reputation suggests he would, it looks like it could be an “out of the frying pan, into the fire” situation.
As good as it is to see Mugabe finally go (and peacefully, before he got Ceaucescu-ed), Mnangagwa is certainly no democratic reformer.
While one can certainly hope, for the sake of the long-suffering people of Zimbabwe, that this transition will lead to something better, one can also hope that Trump will finally “pivot”, with roughly comparable odds of success. What just happened is very much about ZANU-PF, and the military, retaining power.
The rift between G40 and Mnangagwa could open a path for the opposition to take power. Tsvangirai came quite close in 2008.
I want to see him out of the office- and stripped of his ill-gotten gain - and without any means of power, before I believe it.
Signing a resignation letter is just a formality.
This episode of the lawfare podcast was really interesting, discussing the coup, etc.
Sadly, I doubt it will mean any immediate positive changes for Zimbabweans (90% unemployment, billions pilfered by the despot’s coterie), but I think it’s possible that Mnangagwa will be a weaker leader given Mugabe apparently is considered something of a George Washington among Zimbabweans; Mnangagwa does not have that same mythology to insulate him from plebeian criticism.
Then again, he and his friend who runs the army have committed atrocities before. It could very well be that fear of re/actions by other countries is all that stands between totalitarian tantrums and slight improvements.
Interestingly, I believe I’ve read or heard that Mnangagwa is 75 years old… so maybe he’ll pass away of old age or something. Maybe he’ll have a different perspective when he transitions from elder to methuselah; maybe he’ll want to leave behind a legacy rather than a ledger of blood favors and money.