{"id":378060,"date":"2017-11-27T14:06:36","date_gmt":"2017-11-27T14:06:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=378060"},"modified":"2017-11-27T14:06:36","modified_gmt":"2017-11-27T14:06:36","slug":"zimbabwe-officially-declares-mugabe-national-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/11\/zimbabwe-officially-declares-mugabe-national-holiday\/","title":{"rendered":"Zimbabwe officially declares Mugabe national holiday"},"content":{"rendered":"
Zimbabwe has officially declared 21 February to be Robert Gabriel Mugabe National Youth Day, thereby making the former president’s birthday a public holiday, the Herald newspaper reports.<\/p>\n
New President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to form a cabinet this week.<\/p>\n
Mr Mugabe resigned last week after a military intervention and days of mass protests.<\/p>\n
The police and army are to stage joint patrols as the country returns to normal, the authorities have said.<\/p>\n
They have already received reports of looting and illegal occupation of properties, particularly farms and houses.<\/p>\n
Police had not been seen in public until 21 November when Mr Mugabe resigned and they slowly started returning to work. The army had effectively been in charge.<\/p>\n
Before the army operation, police officers had been an ever-present sight in the centre of the capital, Harare, and roads around the country, although they were not always welcome as many complained of police harassment.<\/p>\n
Calls for the former president’s birthday to be made a national holiday were adopted by the government in August, following intense lobbying by the Zanu-PF Youth League,\u00a0the Herald reports.<\/p>\n
The decision was officially recorded on Friday, it adds.<\/p>\n
Last week, President Mnangagwa said the former president needed to be given the respect and recognition he deserved as one of the founders and leaders of Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n
“To me personally, he remains a father, mentor, comrade-in-arms and my leader,” he said during his acceptance speech at his inauguration on Friday.<\/p>\n
Reports that Mr Mugabe was granted $10m (\u00a37.5m)\u00a0to ease him out of office have not been confirmed.<\/p>\n
Break from the past?<\/strong><\/p>\n There is speculation as to whether Mr Mnangagwa will select a broad-based government or keep figures from the Mugabe era.<\/p>\n The opposition Movement for Democratic Change has called for an inclusive “transitional authority” to mark a break with his 37-year rule and bring in reforms to pave the way for free elections next year.<\/p>\n There are fears that President Mnangagwa, who is associated with some of worst atrocities committed under the ruling Zanu-PF party since independence in 1980, will not usher in the democratic reforms that many in Zimbabwe are hoping for.<\/p>\n –<\/p>\n Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Zimbabwe has officially declared 21 February to be Robert Gabriel Mugabe National Youth Day, thereby making the former president’s birthday a public holiday, the Herald newspaper reports. New President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to form a cabinet this week. Mr Mugabe resigned last week after a military intervention and days of mass protests. The police […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":378062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107],"tags":[10377,563],"yoast_head":"\n