{"id":8880,"date":"2025-09-08T11:09:12","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T11:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=8880"},"modified":"2025-09-08T11:09:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T11:09:16","slug":"rights-group-launches-campaign-against-presidential-term-extension-citing-constitutional-breach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=8880","title":{"rendered":"Rights Group Launches Campaign Against Presidential Term Extension, Citing Constitutional Breach"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><br>By Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube |<br>Zim GBC News Editor<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>HARARE \u2013 The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) has launched a nationwide campaign, \u201cTinoida yakadaro, Siyifuna Injalo\u201d (We want it like that), to counter growing calls from within the ruling ZANU PF party to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa\u2019s term beyond its constitutional limit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The campaign was announced in a statement released on Thursday, September 4, 2025, following the Coalition\u2019s Coordinating Committee meeting. The group called upon all citizens to resist what it termed \u201cattempts to retain power beyond the constitutionally prescribed two five-year terms.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The statement read,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe meeting acknowledged the intensified efforts by the ruling ZANU PF party to expedite a presidential term extension while bypassing the requirement for a referendum. In response, the Coalition will continue mobilizing communities across the country to build a constitutional defense movement aimed at safeguarding the constitution from regressive amendments.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The campaign specifically targets perceived efforts to alter the constitution without public consent, taking a strong stance against any tampering with provisions that legally require a national referendum to be changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The meeting also addressed the increasingly restrictive environment for civic organizations following the promulgation of the Private Voluntary Organisations (PVO) Bill. The Coalition reported that the registration process for PVOs has become \u201chighly securitized,\u201d with interviews resembling interrogations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMany organizations reported that the nature of the questioning felt intrusive and often strayed far from topics pertinent to their areas of work,\u201d the statement noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In defiance, Coalition members resolved to challenge the law in court rather than comply with the mandatory registration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This development stands in direct opposition to recent comments from Minister of Local Government, Daniel Garwe, who has publicly reiterated that \u201cthe President must stay beyond 2028.\u201d Garwe stated that there would be no elections until 2030, a move that contradicts the constitutional mandate for elections every five years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Legal experts suggest that ZANU PF is attempting to use its parliamentary majority to postpone elections, thereby avoiding a risky referendum to amend presidential term limits. Some lawyers have condemned the strategy, calling it tantamount to \u201ca coup against the constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The issue is expected to be a central topic at the upcoming ZANU PF annual conference scheduled for October 13-18 at Mutare Polytechnic, where Mnangagwa\u2019s allies are reportedly planning to push the \u201c2030 agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While President Mnangagwa has publicly stated he is not interested in extending his rule, his close allies are vigorously lobbying for an extension. The internal push is also seen as part of a broader succession battle between Mnangagwa and Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Zim GBC News will continue to monitor this developing story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Follow us for real-time updates:<br>\u00b7 X (Twitter): @ZimGbc \u00b7Instagram: @ZimGBCNews<br>\u00b7TikTok: @ZimGBCNews_01 \u00b7Facebook: Zim GBC News<br>\u00b7YouTube: Zim GBC News<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Get real-time alerts on WhatsApp:<br>+263 773 820 323<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For in-depth coverage, visit our website: www.zimgbcnews.co.zw<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Zim GBC News | Global News From An African Perspective\u00a92025<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Innocent Sibonginkosi Ncube |Zim GBC News Editor HARARE \u2013 The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) has launched a nationwide campaign, \u201cTinoida yakadaro, Siyifuna Injalo\u201d (We want it like that),&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8881,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8880","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=8880"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8882,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8880\/revisions\/8882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}