At 93 and having been in power for almost four decades, Robert Mugabe is already one of the longest-serving, not mention oldest, heads of state in the world.
Yet the former freedom fighter turned President of Zimbabwe shows no sign he is ready to throw in the towel.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
There is little doubt he will win another term as president but given he will be 99 by the time of the next election, “behind the public scenes of loyalty and adulation” an intense power struggle is taking place among his supporters, with different factions, driven by the military and veterans, looking for his endorsement in the battle over his succession, says The Guardian.
The problem, says Zimbabwe Democracy Institute director Pedzisai Ruhanya, is that: “Mugabe wants to die in office and is not interested in seeing his successor.”
The lack of an obvious heir has led to the elevation of Mugabe’s own wife Grace as one of the favourites to succeed him.
Following years out of the limelight, since 2014 Grace Mugabe, 52, has slowly begun to consolidate power and build her own support base. She is secretary of Zanu-PF’s Women’s League and has the active support of the Youth League.
A faction called Generation 40 (G40), a grouping of younger leaders that deliberately draws a distinction with the party’s old guard, has formed around Grace Mugabe.
On Monday, in the latest sign the President is throwing his support behind his wife, he sacked former vice-president and potential leadership challenger Emmerson Mnangagwa as justice minister, in a cabinet reshuffle seen as significantly strengthening Grace Mugabe’s position.
The Guardian says that “with the support of her husband and the power of the state, [she] could easily win the succession battle”.
-
Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ comes into confounding focusIn the Spotlight What began as a plan to redevelop the Gaza Strip is quickly emerging as a new lever of global power for a president intent on upending the standing world order
-
‘It’s good for the animals, their humans — and the veterinarians themselves’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
The world is entering an era of ‘water bankruptcy’The explainer Water might soon be more valuable than gold
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
