HARARE — Vice President Constantino Chiwenga delivered what appeared, on the surface, to be a spiritual address at a Roman Catholic Church event in Murewa on Saturday, but his choice of scripture carried unmistakable resonance against the backdrop of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s push to rewrite Zimbabwe’s constitution and cling to power.
Extolling the virtues of Saint Francis of Assisi, Chiwenga urged leaders to embrace “humility, radical simplicity, peace building and compassionate outreach to the most vulnerable,” qualities he described as forming “a balanced leadership framework.”
He then turned to the Book of Isaiah in the Bible, and the story of King Hezekiah.
“When God asks you to do something, never question why. Why has God done this?” Chiwenga, a Catholic, told the congregation.
“Hezekiah reigned over Judah for a very long time, and became a very prominent king. He began to see himself as not fit for death and thought he was supposed to reign over Judah forever.”
Chiwenga said God sent the prophet Isaiah to warn Hezekiah that his time was up, he had a few days to live and that he must put his affairs in order. But the king refused to accept it.
“Hezekiah would have none of it, hitting on the walls of the palace: ‘What kind of a God are you? There is no any other king who can reign like me.’”
God relented and granted Hezekiah 15 more years, but the extension proved disastrous. The king, his judgement clouded, revealed his kingdom’s military secrets to spies from Nebuchadnezzar, who later returned to crush him.
“He never managed even three months (as king) of the extended period,” Chiwenga said. “He spent the extended 15 years down in jail. God did not take away the 15 years, he let him have them, but he was in jail.”
The parable landed with particular resonance in the wake of the tabling of the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 3) Bill 2026 in parliament. The bill introduces a sweeping package of changes that would fundamentally redraw the country’s political architecture in ways that benefit Mnangagwa and neutralise potential rivals, including Chiwenga himself.
One of the most dramatic provisions abolishes the direct election of the president by popular vote. The president would instead be elected by members of parliament sitting in a joint session of the Senate and National Assembly.
To win, a candidate would need more than half the valid votes cast by MPs.
The bill erodes provisions on automatic succession by the vice president in the event of the president’s incapacitation, resignation or death – closing a path to the top office for Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi, the second of Mnangagwa’s two deputies.
Chiwenga, a former Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander who is widely regarded as co-architect of the November 2017 military coup that brought Mnangagwa to power, has long been viewed as a potential successor. The amendment dims that prospect significantly, with political analysts warning the presidency could now go to the highest bidder, with leadership rivals appearing prepared to bribe MPs to wrest control of both Zanu PF and the government.
The bill also controversially proposes extending both presidential and parliamentary terms from five years to seven, which lawyers and opposition parties say is unconstitutional and would require at least a referendum to permit incumbents to benefit.
The bill’s memorandum offers a governance rationale — that longer terms “eliminate election mode toxicity” and allow “sufficient time for project implementation.”
Mnangagwa’s current term runs to 2028, and he is constitutionally barred from seeking a further term. His supporters say the proposals in the amendments are not a breach of the term limit provision in the constitution but merely an extension.
The bill also proposes raising the number of senate seats from 80 to 90, with the president empowered to appoint 10 additional senators chosen for “professional skills and other competencies,” further expanding the president’s control over the upper chamber.
MPs are expected to vote on the bill in late May, before the president signs it into law.
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