The government have given their first official reaction to the alleged coup attempt in Zimbabwe. They are by no means taking ‘affirmative action’.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday evening, the BBC reported that Secretary-General Gwede Mantashe told his audience that the party would not be getting involved in the apparent upheaval. He stated that Zimbabwe is ‘our neighbour, not our province’.
Gwede Mantashe rules out SA intervention in Zimbabwe
“The party would be concerned if “things go wrong there because it will impact on us. But we have no authority over them. That’s the point we are making,” he said.
“At one time at the height of the Zimbabwe question there were suggestions by big powers that we must just walk into Zimbabwe [and] whip them into line. We will not do that. It is not done. It is our neighbour, not our province.”
On Tuesday, Zim’s army chief General Constantino Chiwenga warned that the military would step in if “treacherous shenanigans” continued in the ruling Zanu-PF. The bellicose threat seemed to be put into action earlier today, as numerous army vehicles charged towards Harare.
However, earlier speculation that a coup was underway seemed to have cooled a little. It does seem like this was a show of force, though, by a military who are happy to show their dissent against Robert Mugabe.
What started off the alleged ‘coup’ in Zimbabwe?
Mr Mugabe sacked his Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa from office on Monday 6th November. This has turned out to be one of the more eventful decisions of Bob’s reign in the last decade.
Mnangagwa has since fled the country, but he harbours the strong support of Zimbabwe’s military forces. He has previously refused to rule out military coup of the Mugabe regime, and it is suspected he is involved in today’s rising tensions.