津巴布韦总统埃默森·姆南加古瓦表示,津巴布韦将于4到5个月内举行长期统治者穆加贝下台后的首次总统选举。

据国营的津巴布韦《先驱报》消息,姆南加古瓦星期三(1月17日)在对邻国莫桑比克进行正式访问期间做出上述承诺。

这位津巴布韦领导人承诺举行自由、公正的选举,确保津巴布韦“作为一个合格的民主国家跟世界接触”。预计选举将于7月或8月举行。

统治津巴布韦37年、93岁的穆加贝去年11月在压力下被迫辞去总统职务,在那之前军方果断行动解除了穆加贝的职务,他还失去了他所在的执政党非洲民族联盟-爱国阵线内议员的支持。

穆加贝长期统治期间,津巴布韦的选举受到操纵选票和暴力的玷污。

President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe says the country will hold elections in four to five months, the first since the ouster of longtime ruler Robert Mugabe.

Mnangagwa made the pledge Wednesday during an official trip to neighboring Mozambique, according to a report in the state-owned Herald newspaper.

The Zimbabwean leader pledged to ensure free and fair elections to ensure Zimbabwe “engages the world as a qualified democratic state.” Elections had been expected to be held in either July or August.

The 93-year-old Mugabe ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years before he was forced to resign under pressure last November after he was removed from power in a shock move by the military and lost support of lawmakers in his ruling ZANU-PF party.

During Mugabe’s long rule, elections in Zimbabwe were marred by vote rigging and violence.