The
insatiable
love
for
power
and
the
domino
effects
of
being
a
student
of
the
late
leader
Robert
Mugabe
who
ruled
for
37
years
have
been
cited
as
some
of
the
reasons
why
Mnangagwa
wants
to
hold
on.
Desire
for
longevity
Close
sources
in
the
know
of
Mnangagwa’s
current
state
of
mind
and
thinking
revealed
a
number
of
reasons
why
the
81-year-old
leader
wants
to
exceed
his
constitutionally
mandated
two
terms.
“The
first
reason
is
his
desire
for
longevity.
This
is
not
surprising
because
he
is
the
late
Robert
Mugabe’s
student.
This
is
the
legacy
of
his
association
and
grooming,”
a
senior
Zanu
PF
official
said.
Mugabe
was
in
power
from
Independence
in
1980
until
he
was
removed
by
the
military
in
2017.
Trappings
of
power
The
sources
also
said
trappings
of
power
are
making
Mnangagwa
want
to
rule
longer
than
is
provided
in
the
constitution.
“There
is
nothing
he
knows
except
power.
He
is
the
only
surviving
minister
who
was
in
cabinet
from
1980.
He
is
not
prepared
to
be
an
ordinary
citizen
now.
He
loves
power
as
can
be
seen
by
how
happy
he
was
to
assume
the
rotational
Sadc
chair,”
said
another
source.
“Besides,
he
fought
long
and
hard
to
be
President,
particularly
with
the
faction
led
by
the
late
General
Solomon
Mujuru.
He
also
battled
former
vice-president
Joice
Mujuru
after
the
general’s
death
and
eventually
took
power
in
a
coup.”
After
Independence,
Mnangagwa
held
a
series
of
senior
cabinet
positions
under
Mugabe.
From
1980
to
1988,
he
was
the
country’s
first
minister
of
State
Security,
and
oversaw
the
Central
Intelligence
Organisation.
Mnangagwa
was
minister
of
Justice,
Legal
and
Parliamentary
Affairs
from
1989
to
2000
and
then
Speaker
of
Parliament
from
2000
until
2005,
when
he
was
demoted
to
minister
of
Rural
Housing
for
openly
jockeying
to
succeed
the
aging
Mugabe.
Mnangagwa
bounced
back
to
favour
during
the
2008
general
election,
in
which
he
ran
Mugabe’s
campaign
as
his
chief
election
agent,
orchestrating
political
violence
against
the
opposition
Movement
for
Democratic
Change,
then
led
by
the
fiery
Morgan
Tsvangirai,
now
late.
Mnangagwa
then
served
as
minister
of
Defence
from
2009
until
2013,
when
he
became
Justice
minister
again.
He
went
on
to
be
appointed
first
vice-president
in
2014
and
was
widely
considered
as
the
leading
candidate
to
succeed
Mugabe.
Although
Mnangagwa’s
ascendancy
was
opposed
by
Mugabe’s
wife,
Grace
Mugabe,
and
her
Generation
40
political
faction,
he
became
President
in
November
2017
after
a
military
coup.
He
controversially
won
the
2018
elections
and
secured
his
second
term
after
again
controversially
winning
the
2023
elections.
As
a
cabinet
member
since
1980,
Mnangagwa
has
enjoyed
unfettered
freebies
for
the
past
four
decades.
Benefits
as
Head
of
State
and
Government
Our
sources
say
another
reason
making
Mnangagwa
want
to
stay
longer
is
the
unease
of
losing
benefits
that
he
is
receiving
as
leader
of
Zimbabwe.
Mnangagwa
enjoys
hefty
perks,
tight
security
and
feeds
from
the
government
trough
where
he
Why
Mnangagwa
wants
term
extension
in
power
basically
gets
whatever
he
wants
for
free.
Incentives
Mnangagwa
also
has
access
to
lucrative
government
tenders
which
are
doled
out
to
his
blue-eyed
boys
as
confirmed
by
the
recently
leaked
audio
recording
of
Wicknel
Chivayo
bragging
to
his
erstwhile
colleagues
Mike
Chimombe
and
Moses
Mpofu
how
his
close
proximity
to
the
President
was
giving
him
access
to
government
tenders.
As
they
wrangled
over
the
sharing
of
proceeds
from
a
US$100
million
Zimbabwe
Electoral
Commission
underhand
deal
for
the
supply
of
election
materials,
Chivayo
bragged
that
he
had
the
capacity
to
influence
government
tenders
as
he
had
a
tight
grip
over
Mnangagwa.
“The
incentives
include
having
an
upperhand
to
get
tenders
for
his
cronies,
gifts
from
wealthy
associates
and
freebies,
some
of
them
bordering
on
bribery.
His
children
are
in
mining
and
many
commercial
activities
as
a
direct
result
of
his
presidency.
His
wife
is
deeply
involved
in
a
number
of
deals,
including
the
Belarus
deals,”
said
the
source.
Human
rights
abuses
The
sources
also
say
Mnangagwa
is
desperate
to
overstay
because
he
could
be
fearing
retribution
over
alleged
past
transgressions.
Mnangagwa’s
alleged
role
in
the
Gukurahundi
massacres,
in
which
20
000
mostly
Ndebele
civilians
were
killed
by
North
Korean-trained
5th
brigade
in
the
Midlands
and
Matabeleland
regions
during
his
tenure
as
State
Security
minister
is
well
documented.
The
sources
said
the
2008
pre-election
abductions,
killings
during
the
2008
election
re-run
and
the
murder
of
protesters
by
the
army
on
1
August
2018
in
Harare
as
well
as
a
series
of
other
human
rights
abuses
could
be
another
source
of
unease.
After
Mugabe
had
lost
elections
to
Tsvangirai,
Mnangagwa
was
instrumental
in
retaining
his
then
boss
in
office
after
a
brutal
campaign.
These
also
include
fresh
cases
of
arrest
and
detention
of
human
rights
defenders
and
dozens
of
other
opposition
activists.
Fear
of
corruption
cases
Since
Mnangagwa’s
ascension
to
power
in
2017,
many
of
the
companies
that
have
signed
“mega-deals”
with
Zimbabwe
have
either
been
connected
to
him,
his
family
or
cronies
in
government.
Nothing
much
has
come
out
of
the
deals
partly
because
of
the
questionable
track
record
of
the
investors
involved.
During
the
start
of
his
tenure,
Mnangagwa
claimed
he
had
clinched
US$11
billion
worth
of
business
for
the
country.
However,
it
then
emerged
the
bulk
of
the
flaunted
deals
were
murky
and
spearheaded
by
dodgy
characters.
In
a
four-part
Al
Jazeera
investigative
documentary
dubbed
“The
gold
Mafia,”
Mnangagwa
came
out
as
Mario
Puzo’s
Vito
Corleone
(Brando)
—
The
Godfather
or
simply
mafia
boss.
The
investigation
showed
that
different
gold
smuggling
syndicates
looting
gold
and
salting
away
proceeds
to
offshore
accounts
have
one
common
thread
—
links
to
Mnangagwa.
Main
characters
in
the
film
who
sucked
Mnangagwa
into
the
vortex
of
action
include
his
own
envoy
and
ambassador-at-large
Uebert
Angel,
a
selfstyled
prophet
who
is
a
key
interlocutor
throughout
the
documentary
(Diplomatic
Mafia),
Rikki
Doolan
(Diplomatic
Mafia),
Ewan
Macmillan
(Mr
Gold),
Kamlesh
Pattni
(Gold
Dealer
Brother
Paul)
and
Alistair
Mathias
(Gold
Trader
—
The
Architect).
Mnangagwa’s
wife
Auxillia,
the
First
Lady,
and
Pedzai
“Scott”
Sakupwanya
(New
Mr
Gold)
kept
the
President
firmly
at
the
centre
of
action
in
the
last
episode.
One
gold
smuggler
described
Mnangagwa
—
referred
to
in
some
instances
as
Mr
Jones
—
as
his
business
partner.
Another
talked
of
him
as
an
on-and-off
partner
whom
he
still
meets.
A
third
said
he
had
to
keep
the
President
in
the
loop
about
gold
smuggling
operations.
Fear
of
military
reprisals
Due
to
the
fallout
between
Mnangagwa
and
the
military
after
the
2017
coup,
the
ageing
leader
could
be
feeling
unsafe
to
leave
power.
Mnangagwa,
who
fancies
himself
as
Munhumutapa,
a
reference
to
historical
Shona
kings,
was
supposed
to
have
left
in
2023
in
terms
of
a
deal
with
the
military,
but
hung
onto
power,
resulting
in
the
fallout.
He
also
promised
to
significantly
improve
the
welfare
conditions
of
the
military,
which
did
not
happen,
further
worsening
the
fallout.
Mnangagwa
therefore
fears
if
he
relinquishes
power,
there
could
be
reprisals
from
the
military.
Post
published
in:
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