Zimbabwean Vice President Kembo Mohadi resigned on Monday after local media reports accused him of improper conduct, including accusations of sexual impropriety, reported Africa News.
In a statement shared by the Zimbabwean Ministry of Information, the 70-year-old Mohadi said he had decided to step down to save the image of the government and respect for the people of Zimbabwe and the ruling party.
He said he was stepping down “not as a matter of cowardice but as a sign of demonstrating great respect to the office of the President.”
“I have been going through a soul-searching pilgrimage and realized that I need the space to deal with my problem outside the governance chair,” the vice president said in the statement.
In the resignation letter, he apologized to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, his Cabinet, and all Zimbabweans for his alleged infidelity.
According to local media reports, Mohadi had improper sexual liaisons with a number of married women, including one of his subordinates.
The Zimbabwean vice president had denied the accusations a week ago, saying it was of a political plot against him.
“I’m a victim of information distortion, voice cloning and sponsored spooking, and political sabotage,” Mohadi said in the letter.
On Monday he continued to deny the accusations saying he would seek legal recourse.
Mohadi, a retired soldier and veteran of the country’s liberation war, was one of the two deputies to President Mnangagwa alongside Constantino Chiwenga since 2017. But he was not seen as a potential successor to the president as he lacked a political power base. He served in several ministerial positions under former president Robert Mugabe and was appointed vice president in 2017 following the longtime ruler’s ouster.
The Zimbabwean price president’s resignation has created a stir on social media with speculation fast shifting to who President Mnangagwa would pick as his replacement.
