The former leader of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe in an interview broadcast Thursday said he never thought new President Emmerson Mnangagwa would turn against him. He denounced the move to push him out last year as a ”coup”.
Mugabe, ruled the southern African nation of Zimbabwe from independence in 1980 until he stepped down under pressure from allies of Mnangagwa’s in the army last November. Regarded by some as a liberation hero, others remember Mugabe as the man who turned a once-promising country into an international pariah and economic basket case.
Under Mugabe, deputy president Mnangagwa had promised to open up Zimbabwe to foreign investment and restore ties with the West since ascending to power.
In an interview granted to the South African state-broadcaster SABC from Harare, Mugabe said ”I never thought he whom I had nurtured and brought into government and whose life I worked so hard in prison to save as he was threatened with hanging, that one day he would be the man who would turn against me”.
Having been convicted of sabotage under white minority rule, Mnangagwa was sentenced to death but was spared the noose because he was considered a minor when he had committed the crime.
Mugabe said he was ousted in what he called a ”military takeover” and that Mnangagwa has assumed the presidency illegally.
Since his fall from power, the 94-years old Mugabe has stayed at his Harare mansion with wife Grace. A culmination of the power struggle between Mnangagwa and Grace Mugabe, who was being groomed by her husband as his potential successor was among the reasons behind his ouster.
Having been granted immunity from prosecution and assured safety in his home country, in a deal which led to his resignation. Mugabe quit as parliament began impeachment proceedings against him, triggering wild celebrations across the country.
Mnangagwa has vowed to end discrimination between black and white farmers in Zimbabwe. Former colonial master Britain has pushed for more transparency and fair land reform.
Neba Benson,
BaretaNews Foreign Correspondent/Analyst
