Zimbabwe's Ruling Party Initiates Impeachment of Robert Mugabe

A ruling party official in Zimbabwe announced that with the deadline for President Robert Mugabe to resign passing by noon on Monday, the party will begin the process of impeaching him. Laumor Matuke stated on Monday, November 20, to Reuters that members of the ruling party 'Zanu-PF' will kick off the impeachment motion against Mugabe in a parliamentary meeting today. In the draft of this impeachment motion, Mugabe is described as a 'source of instability' in the country, emphasizing that he has undermined the rule of law and caused an 'unprecedented economic collapse' in Zimbabwe over the past fifteen years. The text also mentions that Mugabe's nullification of the constitutional principle to favor his unpopular and aggressive wife led to military intervention, bringing tanks into the capital's streets. The 93-year-old Mugabe, who is the world's oldest current leader, attempted last Tuesday to appoint his wife, Grace, to the position of Vice President after dismissing the current one, but faced military backlash that resulted in him being confined to his home. During this time, he lost the support of the ruling party, yet despite pressure from party members, he continues to refuse to resign, prompting 'Zanu-PF' to seek impeachment as a means to remove him from power. Reuters notes that the process of impeaching Mugabe on paper appears lengthy, as it requires a joint session of the Senate and National Assembly of Zimbabwe. Following that, a committee with nine Senate members must be formed, and then another joint session must be held before the President can be removed with a two-thirds vote. However, analysts believe that 'Zanu-PF' has enough senators and representatives to complete this process in a single day. Previously, CNN reported that Robert Mugabe had prepared a draft of his resignation and that he and his wife had been granted full legal immunity. In this context, Mugabe's insistence on remaining in power continues the crisis in Zimbabwe, as he made a public appearance for the first time since house arrest. Mugabe was removed from the leadership of the ruling party but did not mention resigning from power in his televised speech.