President Emmerson Mnangagwa has drafted Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander, General Philip Valerio Sibanda into the Zanu PF politburo in a barefaced violation of the national constitution.
Mnangagwa made the shock announcement in his closing remarks during a Zanu PF conference in Gweru Saturday.
A beneficiary of a 2017 military coup, Mnangagwa named the country’s top ranking soldier as an ex officio member of the Zanu PF highest decision making body in between congresses.
“During the course of the year, we lost one of our party stalwarts, Cde Joshua Teke Malinga who was the Secretary for People with Disabilities.
“To fill the vacancy, I am appointing, Cde Rose Mpofu of Matabeleland South Province as a Politburo Member and the new Secretary for People with Disabilities.
“Additionally, ‘Cde Gwenzi’, General, Phillip Valerio Sibanda, as an Ex Officio Member of the Politburo,” Mnangagwa said of a military boss who also attended the Zanu PF conference.
Sibanda’s appointment is a violation of the national constitution which says “the Defence Forces must respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of all persons and be non-partisan, national in character, patriotic, professional and subordinate to the civilian authority as established by this constitution.”
While Zimbabwe’s military is known for being embedded with ruling party politics, Sibanda’s appointment is an unprecedented case of a serving soldier taking a leadership position within a political party.
The Zanu PF led authority has ironically hounded out of service, a lot of officers within the country’s unformed forces for associating themselves with the opposition, which protests continued military involvement in Zanu PF campaigns.
The appointment of Sibanda could come as an attempt by the under-fire leader to hedge himself against a possible coup with the military ever interested on who should be in the country.
The controversial appointment could also fall within the willy politician’s paraphernalia of self-serving schemes amid subtle signals of an ambition to go for a third term.
Zimbabwe has a dirty history of military interference into the country’s political affairs.
During past election periods, partisan military commanders have vowed never to “salute” an opposition leader emerging from the country’s polls in an indirect threat to block the ascension into power of any winner of the presidential election who is not Zanu PF.
Mnangagwa could also be preparing Sibanda for a post in the Zanu PF presidium.
Last year, exiled former cabinet minister and politburo member Jonathan Moyo revealed Mnangagwa was keen to name Sibanda as his second vice president.
Sibanda is among former liberation war fighters drafted into the country’s military upon independence after having waged the war as a ZIPRA combatant.
ZIPRA was the military wing of the former PF Zapu, a liberation war movement that fought side by side with Zanu PF for the attainment of independence.
Current co-vice president, also a former PF Zapu politician, is battling poor health.
Mohadi collapsed a week ago while addressing a Zanu PF rally called to drum up support to a Gutu party election candidate.
Source Zimlive
