Harare, Nov 21 (AP) Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe resigned aspresident with immediate effect today after 37 years in power,shortly after parliament began impeachment proceedings againsthim.
"My decision to resign is voluntary on my part and arisesfrom my concern for the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe andmy desire for a smooth, non-violent transfer of power," saidMugabe in his letter which was read out in parliament,sparking cheers and dancing.
Ruling party chief whip Lovemore Matuke told TheAssociated Press that recently fired Vice President EmmersonMnangagwa would take over as the country's leader within 48hours.
Matuke said Mnangagwa, who fled the country after hisfiring, "is not far from here." Matuke said they look forwardto Mugabe doing the handover of power "so that Mnangagwa moveswith speed to work for the country."Cars began honking horns and people cheered in thestreets as the news spread like wildfire across the capital,Harare.
Mugabe, who had been the world's oldest head of state at93, said that proper procedures should be followed to installnew leadership.
Mugabe's resignation brought an end to the impeachmentproceedings brought by the ruling ZANU-PF party after itsCentral Committee voted to oust the president as party leaderand select Mnangagwa as his replacement.
Currently in exile, Mnangagwa served for decades asMugabe's enforcer, with a reputation for being astute andruthless, more feared than popular.
Before the resignation, crowds rallied outsideParliament, dancing and singing. Some people placed photos ofMugabe in the street so that cars would run over them.
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai of the MDC party saidthe culture of the ruling party "must end" and everyone mustput their heads together and work toward free and fairelections.
Earlier today, Mnangagwa said in a statement that Mugabeshould acknowledge the nation's "insatiable desire" for aleadership change and resign immediately.
Mnangagwa added to immense pressure on Mugabe to quitafter nearly four decades in power, during which he evolvedfrom a champion of the fight against white minority rule intoa figure blamed for a collapsing economy, governmentdysfunction and human rights violations.
"The people of Zimbabwe have spoken with one voice and itis my appeal to President Mugabe that he should take heed ofthis clarion call and resign forthwith so that the country canmove forward and preserve his legacy," Mnangagwa said in hisstatement, after more than a week of silence.
Mnangagwa, who fled the country and has not appeared inpublic during the past week's political turmoil, said Mugabehad invited him to return to Zimbabwe "for a discussion" onrecent events. However, he said he will not return for now,alleging that there had been plans to kill him at the time ofhis firing.
"I will be returning as soon as the right conditions forsecurity and stability prevail," said Mnangagwa, who has aloyal support base in the military. "Never should the nationbe held at ransom by one person ever again, whose desire is todie in office at whatever cost to the nation."Zimbabwe's polarizing first lady, Grace Mugabe, had beenpositioning herself to succeed her husband, leading a partyfaction that engineered Mnangagwa's ouster.
The prospect of a dynastic succession alarmed themilitary, which confined Mugabe to his home last week andtargeted what it called "criminals" around him who allegedlywere looting state resources - a reference to associates ofthe first lady.
Mnangagwa was targeted by US sanctions in the early 2000sfor undermining democratic development in Zimbabwe, accordingto the Atlantic Council, a US-based policy institute.
However, J Peter Pham, an Africa expert at the council,noted that some Zimbabwean opposition figures have appearedwilling to have dialogue with Mnangagwa in order to move thecountry forward and that the international community shouldconsider doing the same.
"We're not saying whitewash the past, but it is in theinterests of everyone that Zimbabwe is engaged at thiscritical time," Pham said in a statement.
Regional leaders continued efforts to find a solution tothe political turmoil, with South Africa's state-runbroadcaster reporting that the presidents of South Africa andAngola would travel to Zimbabwe tomorrow to meet with"stakeholders" in the political crisis, including Mugabe andthe military.
Impeachment proceedings began days after huge crowdssurged through the capital, Harare, to demand that Mugabequit.
The ruling party had instructed government ministers toboycott a Cabinet meeting that Mugabe called for this morningat State House, the president's official residence, andinstead attend a meeting at party headquarters to work on theimpeachment. (AP)ZH.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.