HARARE,– Zimbabwe’s president Emmerson Mnangagwa has appointed retired army boss Constantino Chiwenga and veteran politician Kembo Mohadi as party vice presidents, his spokesperson said on Saturday, putting them in line for similar positions in government.
CChiwenga’s appointment was largely expected as a reward for leading a de facto coup last month that ended Robert Mugabe’s 37-year rule and brought Mnangagwa to power.
His appointment is also a reflection of the army’s consolidation of power since it turned against the 93-year-old Mugabe after Mnangagwa appointed several senior military officers to his cabinet and the ruling party’s top decision making body, the Politburo since he was sworn in as president.
Presidential spokesperson George Charamba told The Source that Chiwenga and Mohadi’s appointments to vice presidents of the country could only be made by the Chief Secretary to the Government and Cabinet, Misheck Sibanda, who was out of the country.
ZANU-PF spokesperson, Simon Khaya Moyo could not make the announcement as he had been in the running for the position, Charamba said. – Source
