Mugabe hints that he may retire soon
ZIMBABWE: President Robert Mugabe, 92, has raised the prospect of retiring but insists that he will not be ousted by the plotters he accuses of using black magic to try to kill him.
‘‘If I retire, let me retire properly. We will sit down and talk about it properly,’’ he told veterans from Zimbabwe’s independence struggle. If I’m doing wrong, tell me, and I will go,’’ he added.
He accused Joice Mujuru, the former vice-president, of using ‘‘juju’’ or evil spirits to get rid of him, but said that God did not want him to die.
It is not the first time Mugabe has hinted at stepping down.
In March he told a group of war veterans: ‘‘I will leave if that’s what you want.’’
The veterans have been among his staunchest allies since he took power in 1980, but they withdrew their support in July, accusing Mugabe of being a dictatorial leader who had failed to resolve the country’s economic woes.
His comments come as the nation faces a cash shortage, which has forced the central bank to announce plans for new bond notes in lieu of US dollars.
A number of provincial branches of his Zanu PF party have already endorsed him as their candidate for the 2018 elections. - The Times