Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed Zimbabwe's interim president, will take over from Robert Mugabe tomorrow

A day after Zimbabwe’s military took to the street and seized power saying it was keeping President Robert Mugabe and his family safe while targeting “criminals” in his entourage, the Interim Government of Zimbabwe on Thursday installed Emmerson Mnangagwa as the interim president of the country. The interim government took to Twitter to announce the decision, adding that Mnangagwa will formally take over as the interim president on Friday.

The interim government also assured citizens that it is trying its best to resolve the constitutional crisis in the country.

Mnangagwa, always considered Mugabe’s possible successor, was fired as the vice-president of the country last week, plunging Zimbabwe into a fresh political crisis. The military generals believed that the move was aimed at clearing a path for Grace Mugabe, wife of the country’s long-serving leader, to take over and announced on Monday they were prepared to “step in” if purges of their allies did not end. [caption id=“attachment_4212723” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Emmerson Mnangagwa Twitter @edmnangagwa[/caption] On Wednesday, soldiers seized the state broadcaster and a general appeared on television to announce the takeover. Armoured vehicles blocked roads to the main government offices, parliament and the courts in central Harare, while taxis ferried commuters to work nearby. The atmosphere in the capital remained calm. In his first contact with the outside world since the takeover, Mugabe spoke by telephone to the president of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, and told him he was confined to his home but fine, the South African presidency said in a statement. The main goal of the generals appeared to be preventing Grace, 41 years his junior, from succeeding him.

With inputs from Reuters