AFP :
Zimbabwe’s incoming president Emmerson Mnangagwa was preparing Thursday for his new role as president after a triumphant return home following the dramatic departure of Robert Mugabe, ending 37 years of authoritarian rule.
Mnangagwa, who has close ties to the army and the security establishment, returned to Zimbabwe on Wednesday where he received a hero’s welcome, telling crowds of supporters in Harare they were witnessing the start of a new democratic era.
The 75-year-old will be sworn in as president at an inauguration ceremony on Friday.
It was his first public speech since Mugabe fired him as vice president on November 6 over a succession tussle with the first lady, in a move which prompted the military’s intervention and eventually led to Mugabe’s resignation on Tuesday.
“Today we are witnessing the beginning of a new and unfolding full democracy in our country,” he told hundreds of supporters, some wearing shirts emblazoned with his image.
He arrived at the headquarters of the ruling ZANU-PF in a presidential-style motorcade surrounded by a large security detail.
In the crowd, two young men held up stuffed crocodiles in a nod to Mnangagwa’s nickname, earned for his reputation for stealth and ruthlessness.
The inauguration will be held at the 60,000-capacity National Sports Stadium and organisers have called on Zimbabweans “from all walks of life” to come and witness the “historic day”.
Ruling party supporters will be bused to the ceremony from across Zimbabwe for the “once in a lifetime event”, said a ZANU-PF planning note.
Zimbabwe’s incoming president Emmerson Mnangagwa was preparing Thursday for his new role as president after a triumphant return home following the dramatic departure of Robert Mugabe, ending 37 years of authoritarian rule.
Mnangagwa, who has close ties to the army and the security establishment, returned to Zimbabwe on Wednesday where he received a hero’s welcome, telling crowds of supporters in Harare they were witnessing the start of a new democratic era.
The 75-year-old will be sworn in as president at an inauguration ceremony on Friday.
It was his first public speech since Mugabe fired him as vice president on November 6 over a succession tussle with the first lady, in a move which prompted the military’s intervention and eventually led to Mugabe’s resignation on Tuesday.
“Today we are witnessing the beginning of a new and unfolding full democracy in our country,” he told hundreds of supporters, some wearing shirts emblazoned with his image.
He arrived at the headquarters of the ruling ZANU-PF in a presidential-style motorcade surrounded by a large security detail.
In the crowd, two young men held up stuffed crocodiles in a nod to Mnangagwa’s nickname, earned for his reputation for stealth and ruthlessness.
The inauguration will be held at the 60,000-capacity National Sports Stadium and organisers have called on Zimbabweans “from all walks of life” to come and witness the “historic day”.
Ruling party supporters will be bused to the ceremony from across Zimbabwe for the “once in a lifetime event”, said a ZANU-PF planning note.
