By Zimbabwe’s first lady, Grace Mugabe has finally joined the opposition’s longest call for the president to name his successor.
Speaking to her ZANU-PF women’s party on Thursday, Grace Mugabe told the members that “naming a successor will enable all members to rally behind one candidate”, therefore, the first lady advised her 93 year old husband, to name his successor.
The statement however, has been regarded by the President Robert Mugabe as a taboo.
President Mugabe has led Zimbabwe since 1980. He is the world’s oldest head of state and he has repeatedly said he will not choose a successor.
The president is once again amongst the presidential candidates for Zimbabwe’s elections next year and already began his campaigns.
Grace, the first lady, has always been supportive to her husband’s wish of “ruling Zimbabwe all his life” and just previously, the first lady was reported saying that her husband could rule even from the grave.
“If God decides to take him, then we would rather field him as a corpse in the upcoming election,” Grace Mugabe was reported saying, early this year.
This, as per the records, has been the first time Grace Mugabe has publicly urged President Mugabe, her husband, to name a successor although, she did not mention whether her statements were aimed at next year’s elections.
The first lady has recently become increasingly powerful that her decisions have even at times carried more weight than those of the country’s vice president. She has also been headlining her own political rallies since 2014.
The 52 year old Grace is also a sighted potential successor of her husband, though she has been giving mixed signals to it.
She has sometimes said she has no problem becoming the president but on other occasions, she said she has no such ambitions.
Grace was quoted saying that “naming a successor has been the trend in other countries.”
She still upon the issue gave a biblical analogy of a son who organized a feast to crown himself because his father was close to death.
Reporter: Namuddu Shamilah