By Correspondent
A group of retired Army Generals has mounted a dramatic pushback against Constitutional Amendment No3 by writing to Parliament demanding a referendum.
Fronted by retired Air Marshal Henry Muchena the group says the proposed amendments, without a referendum, threaten principles behind the liberation struggle.
“We call on Parliament to do the right thing and submit these proposed amendments to a national referendum, as democratic principles demand.
“Anything less is not a constitutional amendment.
“We write to you today not as rebels, not as dissenters, and not as enemies of the party to which we have given our entire lives.
“We speak as men who were present when this nation was being born in blood and fire.”
The unnamed War Veterans said they were making their position in terms of Section 328(4) of the Constitution.
The provision requires Parliament to invite public input on constitutional amendments.
In a move that signifies internal strife the group argues leaders should align themselves with party values and people’s aspirations rather than reshaping national institutions for personal expediency.
The insinuation is a direct attack at President Mnangagwa who has been accused of seeking to build a personal dynasty.
Factional Angle
However, some sections have dismissed the letter as a mere politicking by a faction aligned to VP Chiwenga.
Former Norton MP and staunch supporter of President Mnangagwa, Temba Mliswa said the letter is a scam.
Mliswa said it’s a product of few people rather than many retired Army officers.
“The politicking begins when people cannot face up to their own gallantry and posture behind vague titles of “Retired Zimbabwean Generals”, dragging innocent souls in their mistimed leap for relevance.
“Who are the Generals if they are sincere about their sentiments?
“This maneuver is starkly a manifestation of political discontent because these very leaders failed to champion the cause of ordinary War Veterans during their own tenures of authority.
“They are the same individuals who relentlessly pursued fellow War Veterans, leading to their arrests, and left their welfare largely unattended during the previous administration,” he said.
War Vets Support Generals
However, a faction of war veterans, the Zimbabwe National Liberation Veterans Association led by Andrease Ethan Mathibela has backed Retired Muchena.
In a statement it said it supported the letter submitted to Parliament.
“The ZNLWVA notes with profound respect the submission made to the Parliament of Zimbabwe by retired generals and senior civil servants, themselves veterans of the liberation struggle, regarding the Proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 (H.B.1, 2026).
“The submission by the retired commanders is a powerful reminder that the liberation struggle was fought so that the people of Zimbabwe would be the ultimate custodians of state power.
The principles of majority rule, universal suffrage, and popular sovereignty were the central pillars of the struggle”, it said.
The divisions exhibited by elements aligned with ZANU PF serves as a stark reminder of the internal differences the amendment has stirred.
Resolute Party Moves
The ruling party has however appeared hell-bent on pushing ahead with the amendments after proferring new arguments at a recent press conference.
Paul Mangwana who served as co-chair during the constitution-making process from 2009 to 2013, emphasized that, under the legal framework, a full term is defined as three years or more, and any period shorter than that does not qualify as a term.
This, he said, indicated that a referendum is not required for the proposed term extension as it does not exceed three years.
Mangwana emphasised that the bill can proceed through the standard legislative process.
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