Zimbabwe\u2019s embattled President Robert Mugabe is facing a deadline set by his own party to resign after his surprise speech where he refused to quit.<\/p>\n
Zanu-PF, which has stripped Mr Mugabe of the party\u2019s leadership, says it will impeach him if he does not step down by 12:00 local time (10:00 GMT) on Monday.<\/p>\n
Proceedings could begin as soon as Tuesday when parliament meets.<\/p>\n
Mr Mugabe\u2019s grip on power has weakened since the army intervened on Wednesday, in a row over who should succeed him.<\/p>\n
The crisis began two weeks ago when the 93-year-old leader sacked his deputy Emmerson Mnangagwa, angering army commanders who saw it as an attempt to position his wife Grace as next president.<\/p>\n
Zimbabwe has since then seen huge street rallies, with demonstrators, including the country\u2019s influential war veterans, demanding his immediate resignation.<\/p>\n
What did Mugabe say in his speech?<\/h2>\n
During the 20-minute address, the president, who was flanked by generals, made no mention of the pressure from his party and the public to quit.<\/p>\n
Instead, he declared that the military had done nothing wrong by seizing power and placing him under house arrest.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever the pros and cons of how they [the army] went about their operation, I, as commander-in-chief, do acknowledge their concerns,\u201d he said, in reference to the army\u2019s move last week to take over the state broadcaster in the capital Harare.<\/p>\n
He also said \u201cthe [Zanu-PF] party congress is due in a few weeks and I will preside over its processes\u201d.<\/p>\n
Before Mr Mugabe\u2019s speech, Mr Mnangagwa was named as Zanu-PF\u2019s new leader and candidate for the 2018 general elections, while Mr Mugabe\u2019s wife was expelled.<\/p>\n
So what happens next?<\/h2>\n
After Mr Mugabe\u2019s speech, Zanu-PF chief whip Lovemore Matuke was quoted as saying that the resignation ultimatum was unchanged.<\/p>\n
He added that impeachment proceedings could be launched on Tuesday in parliament. This would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers.<\/p>\n
The opposition MDC-T party has tried unsuccessfully to impeach Mr Mugabe in the past, but this time the ruling party \u2013 which has an overwhelming majority in both houses \u2013 is likely to go against him.<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n
![\"Homepage](\"https:\/\/ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Telesol-ad.jpg\")
<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n