Zimbabwe just shuffled its top military brass, and it looks like President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa is stacking the deck for his 2030 power play. Lieutenant General Emmanuel Matatu got bumped up to General and took over as Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander after Philip Valerio Sibanda retired. Major General Asher Walter Tapfumaneyi also got promoted to Lieutenant General and is heading the Zimbabwe National Army.
Both these guys are tight with Mnangagwa, which makes sense because he already axed Lieutenant General Anseleem Sanyatwe earlier for being too cozy with Vice President Constantino Chiwenga. The whole reshuffle weakens Chiwenga's shot at the presidency while Mnangagwa tries to stick around past his term limit. Political watchers say Sibanda might jump into politics and possibly grab the Defence minister spot when the cabinet gets reshuffled.
Both these guys are tight with Mnangagwa, which makes sense because he already axed Lieutenant General Anseleem Sanyatwe earlier for being too cozy with Vice President Constantino Chiwenga. The whole reshuffle weakens Chiwenga's shot at the presidency while Mnangagwa tries to stick around past his term limit. Political watchers say Sibanda might jump into politics and possibly grab the Defence minister spot when the cabinet gets reshuffled.
