Zimbabwe has long had the prevalent presence of Robert Mugabe, who even at the age of 93 maintains his position. He has even in recent times refused to resign and that has stirred further opposition to this. The future of Mugabe seems to be in the hand of Mugabe himself, particularly how he plans to navigate this crisis in the best way possible.
Despite the growing distrust and popular opposition to him, Mugabe has stated that “he will still chair an upcoming party congress” (The Economist). The very fact Mugabe is still in power has made many feel anxious. This sense of anxiety of the next leader is coupled with the problems that need to be carefully and immediately addressed, in particular with regard to the economy.
However, what it is imperative is how Mugabe has managed to be in power for 37 years. The careful weeding out and carefully constructed support has allowed him to be almost untouchable. It was noted in recent unrest and coup that “the Zimbabwe Defence Forces says it is arresting ‘criminlas’ around Mr Mugabe, but not questioning his authority” (The Economist).
Having said that, maybe the time for Mugabe to step down has finally come. It has be noted that “should Mr Mugabe fail to step down, impeachment proceedings could begin as early as Tuesday November 21st, when parliament sits” (The Economist). However, the matter of the proceedings will not be simple and even if Mugabe is impeached, the aftermath will be critical to deal with. The political landscape will become open to challenges and the other leadership methods will be carefully analyzed.
Challenges to the ousted former vice-president, Emmerson Mnangagwa and his wife Grace will become apparent. The structure of how the military and the political parties will deal with a new road map for Zimbabwe.
It will be interesting to follow this story further and see how the shape of the country will potentially change and how the neighboring countries will react to them.