(Fixes spelling of ‘signed’ in first paragraph)
HARARE, July 7 (Reuters) – Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa has signed into law legislation that extends his term in office by two years to 2030, government spokesperson Nick Mangwana said on Tuesday.
• Both houses of the Southern African nation’s parliament approved the bill last month.
• “Signed, sealed and delivered – it is now law,” Mangwana said in a post on X, with a copy of the legislation attached to it.
• The bill includes a provision for the president to be elected by parliament rather than by direct popular vote.
• Signs that Mnangagwa, 83, wanted to remain in power beyond the end of his second term in 2028 first emerged about two years ago, when his supporters began chanting slogans at ZANU-PF rallies calling for more time for him to complete his agenda.
• The ruling ZANU-PF party last year adopted a resolution to amend the constitution and extend presidential terms, a proposal that received cabinet backing in February.
(Reporting by Chris Takudzwa Muronzi;Writing by Sfundo Parakozov;Editing by Bate Felix and Joe Bavier)
