KEY POINTS
- Parliament apologizes for power outage during budget speech.
- The power cut was caused by bad weather and technical glitches.
- Parliament assures measures will be put in place to prevent future disruptions.
The Parliament of Zimbabwe has issued an apology after an electricity outage disrupted President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s presence during the 2025 National Budget presentation on November 28, 2024.
The incident, which occurred as Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube was concluding his budget speech, left Parliament in the dark for nearly five minutes.
President Mnangagwa, who was seated among the members of Parliament at the time, was forced to leave the building under awkward circumstances. The power cut caused panic among staff and raised concerns about a potential security threat to the 82-year-old Zanu PF leader.
Parliament offers official apology to Mnangagwa and the Nation
In a statement issued shortly after the incident, Parliament expressed regret over the power failure. The apology was directed to President Mnangagwa and the Zimbabwean public.
“The Parliament of Zimbabwe sincerely apologizes to His Excellency, the President, Dr. E.D. Mnangagwa, and the nation at large for the power outage that occurred yesterday, November 28, 2024, during the presentation of the 2025 Budget Statement,” said Kennedy Chokuda, the Clerk of Parliament.
According to New Zimbabwe, the statement explained that the outage was caused by a technical issue with the country’s electricity distribution system.
Specifically, Parliament cited thunderstorms and strong winds that affected overhead power lines, which led to the tripping of a 132 kV feeder supplying power to a substation. The power failure affected the New Parliament Building and the surrounding areas.
Standby generator malfunctions contribute to power loss
Parliament also detailed that the standby generator at the Mt Hampden precinct, which was supposed to provide backup power, was also impacted by the electrical surge. As a result, the generator lost its memory settings and failed to automatically switch on.
“The standby generator could not automatically switch on and had to be manually reset to restore power,” the statement explained. “Power was fully restored within five minutes of the outage.”
Despite the short duration of the power loss, the situation was widely perceived as embarrassing for the government, particularly in the presence of the head of state.
As Zimbabwe grapples with an ongoing power crisis, which sees citizens facing daily load-shedding of up to 16 hours, the incident drew widespread attention.
Measures to prevent future power failures
In the aftermath of the power outage, Parliament reassured the nation that steps were being taken to ensure such an embarrassing event would not happen again.
The institution pledged to consult with relevant stakeholders to implement measures to prevent future power disruptions.
“Parliament is working closely with stakeholders to ensure that future occurrences of this nature are avoided,” the statement concluded.
Zimbabwe is currently facing its worst power crisis in decades, and regular blackouts are a common occurrence throughout the country, as the national electricity grid continues to face technical and supply challenges.
