Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, 83, signed Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 into law on 7 July, extending presidential and parliamentary terms from five to seven years and pushing the next elections from 2028 to 2030 — directly contradicting his own repeated public pledges that he would not stay in office beyond his current mandate. The amendment also removes direct popular election of the president, transferring that power to parliament, a change critics — including retired military generals, church leaders, and legal experts — say undermines Zimbabwe's constitutional order. Civil society groups have raised alarm over the crackdown on dissent accompanying the reform, pointing to the arrest of Bhekimpilo Mbedzi, chair of the National Democratic Working Group, following a peaceful protest, with activist organisation Citizen Watch Zimbabwe warning that criminalising such demonstrations erodes public trust in democratic institutions.