Political Correspondent
Harare \u2013 A fiery political storm has erupted after former Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) commander Anselem Sanyatwe declared from a church pulpit that the ruling Zanu PF party would govern Zimbabwe “forever,” drawing sharp condemnation from opposition figures and raising fresh concerns about military interference in politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Controversial Pulpit Declaration<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sanyatwe, now Minister of Sports, made the remarks while accompanying his wife, Nyanga North MP Chido Sanyatwe, at a Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) church service in Nyanga over the weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The event, which included a donation from businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei\u2019s Bridging Gaps Foundation, took a political turn when Sanyatwe proclaimed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Zanu PF ichatonga kusvika madhongi amera nyanga (Zanu PF will rule until donkeys grow horns). Whether you like it or not, we will rule over you.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The statement, seen as a direct challenge to Zimbabwe\u2019s democratic principles, has drawn fierce backlash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Opposition Fury<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Prominent lawyer and opposition ally Thabani Mpofu slammed the remarks, questioning their appropriateness in a religious setting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“How does a Zanu PF politician declare during a church service that his party will rule Zimbabwe forever? The SDA church has been politicized, and a line has been crossed. We must respond decisively to this nonsense.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former Binga North MP Prince Dubeko Sibanda accused Sanyatwe of “defiling the church” and compromising its neutrality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Military-Politics Nexus Under Scrutiny<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sanyatwe\u2019s comments have reignited debates about the military\u2019s role in Zimbabwean politics. A former Presidential Guard commander, he was sanctioned by the U.S. for his alleged role in the 2018 post-election shootings of six civilians. His reassignment from the army to the sports ministry was widely viewed as a political maneuver amid Zanu PF\u2019s internal succession battles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Analysts point to a long-standing pattern of military figures openly backing Zanu PF. In 2002, top generals, including now-Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, declared that Zimbabwe\u2019s presidency should only go to those with liberation war credentials\u2014a statement seen as a veiled threat against opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Constitutional Violation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Section 208 of Zimbabwe\u2019s constitution bars security services from political involvement. Sanyatwe\u2019s remarks have raised fresh concerns over the military\u2019s impartiality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“When ex-generals openly vow eternal rule for one party, it undermines the very foundation of democracy,” said political analyst Rejoice Ngwenya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Zimbabweans must ask: Are elections just a ritual if the outcome is pre-determined?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As tensions escalate, Sanyatwe\u2019s declaration has deepened fears that Zimbabwe\u2019s democratic institutions remain captive to militarized politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zim GBC News\u00a92025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Political CorrespondentHarare \u2013 A fiery political storm has erupted after former Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) commander Anselem Sanyatwe declared from a church pulpit that the ruling Zanu PF party would… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7353,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7354,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7352\/revisions\/7354"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7353"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}