Presidential Ambitions
It has been an open secret in Zimbabwe for many years that Emmerson Mnangagwa would like to succeed Robert Mugabe as president.
His rise to power began as a young man, when he helped direct Zimbabwe's 1970s war of independence and later became the country's spy-master during the 1980s civil conflict. He worked closely with Dan Stannard, who was one of the few whites who remained in the Zimbabwean secret service, CIO, after the departure of Ken Flower.
On December 17, 2004, he lost his post as Zanu-PF Secretary for Administration and was instead named Secretary for Legal Affairs, in what was considered a demotion. As Secretary for Administration he had been able to place his supporters in key party positions. The move followed reports that Mnangagwa had been campaigning too hard for the post of vice-president, backed by his close ally, former Information Minister Jonathan Moyo. Mugabe sacked Moyo from both his party and government posts. The President has instead reportedly become alarmed at the activities of Joyce Mujuru, who got the vice-president's job, and her powerful husband, former army chief Solomon Mujuru.
Read more about this topic: Emmerson Mnangagwa
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