By a correspondent
As the Constitutional Amendment Bill Number 3 goes through the crucial legislative process, a group of retired top civil servants and senior military generals in Zimbabwe has fiercely the Bill, accusing President Emmerson Mnangagwa of pushing through a deceptive public consultation phase that disregarded widespread resistance from the citizenry.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the group disclosed that consecutive high-level meetings with President Emmerson Mnangagwa on May 18 and 19, 2026, collapsed without resolution. They claimed that when they raised their objections, Mnangagwa dismissed them with the comment, “whoever wins, wins.”
Condemning the President’s response as “contemptuous,” the former officials reiterated their demand for the bill to be put to a national referendum. They cautioned that pushing the amendment forward could detach both ordinary citizens and members of the ruling ZANU PF party from the nation’s constitutional framework.
They also expressed concern over ongoing court challenges to the Bill and urged the judiciary to uphold its constitutional responsibilities. In some of the most explosive claims contained in the statement, the retired officials alleged that financial incentives, including vehicle allocations and cash payments, had been used to secure support for CAB3.
They said a US$31 million fund had been set aside to influence parliamentary votes in favour of the Bill. The retired officials warned Members of Parliament against supporting the proposed amendments, arguing that extending presidential and parliamentary terms without voter approval would constitute a violation of the Constitution. They pledged to continue opposing CAB3 through legal, constitutional, and civic means.
