ZANU-PF has taken its Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 campaign to Marondera, telling supporters the proposed changes can be passed without a referendum, while openly framing the move as the political basis for President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa to lead until 2030.

The meetings come days before Parliamentary consultations expected next week, setting up a familiar Zimbabwean tension: a major constitutional change is being sold as routine process, even as its core prize is a longer runway for one leader and one party.

What ZANU-PF told supporters in Marondera
Speaking at an inter-district meeting in Marondera, ZANU-PF Mashonaland East provincial chairperson Daniel Garwe argued that Bill No. 3 does not require a referendum and urged party members to defend what he called Resolution Number 1.

"At the beginning of the year, President Mnangagwa directed that the party and Government implement all resolutions, including Resolution Number 1. The amendments are meant to serve the interests of the people. The issue of term extension does not require a referendum, hence the current process."
Daniel Garwe, ZANU-PF Mashonaland East provincial chairperson (as quoted by ZBC News)

Garwe said matters such as increasing the number of terms, the Bill of Rights and land issues would require a referendum, adding that government was not violating the Constitution.

The contradiction at the centre of Bill No. 3
ZANU-PF is asking the public to treat the process as legally straightforward, but its own speakers tied the amendment to a term-extension outcome and to keeping Mnangagwa in office until 2030.

That creates a basic accountability gap the party has not closed in public: if the practical effect is to extend a political timeline, what safeguards are being offered to ensure the amendment is not simply a political shortcut dressed as procedure?

Party leaders enlist youths, women, and war veterans
Several party leaders used the meeting to project unity behind the proposed amendment.

"As the youths in Mashonaland East, we are fully supporting the Bill. This is an agreed position from party conferences, hence, Bill Number 3 is unstoppable."
Isaac Tasikani, Mashonaland East Youth provincial chairperson (as quoted by ZBC News)

"As women in Mashonaland East, we are in full support of the Bill. The construction of dams, village business units, and water projects is benefiting mostly women."
Apolonia Munzverengwi, ZANU-PF Women’s League chairperson in Mashonaland East (as quoted by ZBC News)

ZANU-PF secretary for War Veterans Affairs Douglas Mahiya urged veterans to follow party directives, while Mashonaland East War Veterans League chairperson Major Daniel Matengo said the amendment had already been endorsed at earlier gatherings.

ZiG notes briefing folded into the political rally
The meeting also included officials from the central bank speaking to supporters about the Zimbabwe Gold currency, with ZBC reporting that the new ZiG notes are expected to start circulating on April 7.

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has presented the ZiG as part of a broader monetary reset since April 2024, but the decision to pair a currency message with a partisan political rally is likely to fuel fresh questions about where state education ends and party mobilisation begins.

What happens next
With Parliamentary consultations expected next week, the key test will be whether the public hearings surface the legal reasoning in full, including what Bill No. 3 changes in practice, and why government believes a referendum is not required.

If the amendment is truly about process and development, the details should be able to withstand public scrutiny without the campaign language.

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*Additional reporting sourced from Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation. The Granite Post has independently verified key details.*