HARARE, Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe’s Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a controversial constitutional amendment bill that will keep President Emmerson Mnangagwa in office until 2030, extending his tenure by two years and ending direct presidential elections in the country.
The bill, which critics have labelled a “constitutional coup,” passed with 75 senators voting in favour and four opposing it. The National Assembly had earlier approved the measure on June 18 with 216 votes in favour and 42 against. The legislation now awaits Mnangagwa’s signature to become law.
The sweeping changes include a provision extending presidential and parliamentary terms from five to seven years, effectively prolonging Mnangagwa’s final constitutionally permitted second term until 2030. Another controversial amendment transfers the power to select the president from the public to parliament, abolishing the system of direct presidential elections introduced in 1987.
Mnangagwa, 83, who has been in power since 2017 following a military-backed coup that ousted Robert Mugabe, previously stated he would step down when his second term expired in 2028. However, his ruling ZANU-PF party, which holds a commanding parliamentary majority and has governed Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, championed the amendments.
The opposition, weakened by years of repression and tainted elections, has condemned the changes as an attempt to entrench ZANU-PF’s grip on power in the resource-rich southern African nation. Critics, including human rights lawyers and activists, argue that extending presidential terms requires approval through a national referendum. However, Mnangagwa’s supporters counter that parliament can enact the changes because the constitutional two-term limit would remain intact, even if each term is longer.
Activists and opposition figures who have attempted to mobilise resistance have reported intimidation, harassment, and violence, including arrests and assaults by suspected state agents. Human Rights Watch said in March that Zimbabwean authorities were using violence and intimidation against opponents of the amendments. “Over the last few months, the police and unidentified armed men have threatened, harassed, and beat up several people who are opposed to the proposed constitutional amendment,” the organisation stated.
The constitutional court threw out an earlier bid to challenge the amendment bill on June 17, ruling it had no legal grounding. Opposition figures have vowed to continue legal challenges, with senior opposition leader David Coltart telling AFP that the changes were an “effective breach” of constitutional provisions, including the right to vote for public officials.
When the cabinet approved the plan in February, it said the move would “enhance political stability and policy continuity to allow development programmes to be implemented to completion.” However, critics argue that the amendments will further consolidate ZANU-PF’s hold on power in a country that has not had a president from outside the ruling party since independence.
