Emmerson Mnangagwa, aged 80, who took over from strongman Robert Mugabe in a coup, is building a reputation as an even more authoritative leader determined to retain control.
Dubbed “the crocodile” in Zimbabwe, the outgoing president is vying for a second term on Wednesday amidst a tense and apprehensive election. Critics accuse him of orchestrating a crackdown on the opposition amid hyperinflation and a struggling economy.
“He exhibits strong authoritarian tendencies,” summarizes Brian Raftopoulos, a Zimbabwean political analyst.
A staunch supporter of a hardline stance and a heavyweight within the ruling party (Zanu-PF) since independence, Mnangagwa assumes the presidency following a succession struggle against Grace Mugabe, the wife of the nonagenarian president ousted in 2017.
Initially, the rivalry led to Mnangagwa’s dismissal from the position of vice president. Fearing for his safety, he fled to Mozambique.
His son, who accompanied him during a night-time journey through the mountains, recalls seeing him sitting at a bus stop in a dusty suit and torn shoes, clutching only a briefcase filled with dollars.
However, the situation swiftly changes over the next few weeks. The military takes control, bolstering Mnangagwa’s position. The former protege, supported by the ruling party, triumphantly returns to the country.
The following year, Mnangagwa secures the presidency with 50.8% of the vote. The opposition contests the results, resulting in the army killing six protestors. The courts validate the outcome.
This election, in which Mnangagwa is once again pitted against his youthful rival Nelson Chamisa, now 45, carries hopes for increased freedoms and economic recovery, but these aspirations are swiftly dashed.
Despite its mineral wealth, the country grapples with severe power shortages and shortages of essentials like gasoline, bread, and medicine. Protests against the soaring cost of living are met with violent suppression. The new regime is accused by the opposition of exceeding Mugabe in terms of brutality.
Recent laws have been enacted to silence dissenting voices. Activists, politicians, and intellectuals are arrested and imprisoned frequently.
Mnangagwa attributes Zimbabwe’s battered economy to Western sanctions, a claim denied by Washington and the EU, who argue that the sanctions target those involved in corruption and human rights abuses.
Likely more authoritarian than his predecessor, Mnangagwa lacks Mugabe’s ideological vision, according to Raftopoulos. “He relies on militarization and securitization, not on a strong intellectual message.”
Since independence in 1980, Mnangagwa maintained a close relationship with Mugabe. He held key positions within the state apparatus.
Though his mentor sidelined him for a time due to suspicions of his ambition, he chose Mnangagwa to lead his campaign in 2008. After losing the first round, Mugabe allegedly oversaw a wave of violence and intimidation masterminded by Mnangagwa that forced the opposition to withdraw from the second round.
Former Minister of Defense, he maintains strong ties with the intelligence services he once headed.
Publicly, he consistently wears a striped scarf in the national colors, attempting to portray an accessible image. During his 2018 campaign, he narrowly escaped an explosion that claimed two lives as he left a rally podium. The previous year, he reportedly survived an attempt to poison him via an ice cream cone.
The reticent octogenarian with dyed hair identifies as a Christian and claims to abstain from alcohol for six months each year.
Born in 1942, Emmerson Dambudzo (“adversity” in the Shona language) Mnangagwa received training in guerrilla warfare, including in China, before joining the struggle for independence. Following his arrest by the British and being hung upside down from a butcher’s hook, he solidified his legend.
Having blown up a train, he was arrested in 1964 and initially sentenced to death, a punishment commuted to imprisonment due to his young age.
After independence, he faced accusations of orchestrating the “Gukurahundi atrocities” in the 1980s, during which soldiers massacred around 20,000 civilians from the Ndebele minority to suppress opposition in the western part of the country.
He has initiated discussions with traditional leaders to address long-standing grievances over these massacres, which he terms a “dark period” in the country’s history
