Zimbabwean president appoints son as deputy finance minister

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Monday appointed his son as the deputy finance minister and retained Mthuli Ncube as the finance minister as he battles to rescue the country’s ailing economy.

The 80-year-old leader is under pressure to rebuild an economy hit by lack of foreign investment, unemployment, high inflation and a local dollar which has plunged 80% this year.

President Mnangagwa won a second term in a disputed vote last month, which the opposition described as a “gigantic fraud” amid criticism from election observers who say the election failed to meet regional and international standards.

Mnangagwa appointed his son David Mnangagwa as Finance Minister Ncube’s deputy under Parliament’s youth quota.

“I have a huge majority and I think the opposition would enjoy to be in actual opposition rather than in government,” Mnangagwa told reporters after announcing the cabinet list, which had no opposition officials in it.