The embattled President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, has resigned, ending his 37-year rule.
The 93-year-old leader announced his resignation in a letter read by the Speaker on Tuesday afternoon.
According to the Speaker, Mugabe noted that the decision to step down is voluntary.
The country’s parliamentary speaker made the announcement, stopping impeachment proceedings to say he had received a resignation letter from Mr Mugabe “with immediate effect”.
There is jubilation on the streets of Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe as the news of Mugabe’s resignation, after close to four decades of his administration, break out.
The moment the speaker of Zimbabwe’s parliament read out Robert Mugabe’s letter of resignation https://t.co/ookRf1pBzM pic.twitter.com/eT5kRpNpnM
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) November 21, 2017
Mugabe’s resignation follows moves by both Zimbabwe’s ruling and opposition parties to impeach the 93-year-old leader.
Recall that pressure came from ousted vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, who said Mr Mugabe should acknowledge the nation’s “insatiable desire” for a leadership change and resign immediately.
It is a stunning end for what was the world’s oldest leader.
|The Nation