Mnangagwa Delivers SONA by Torchlight as Power Fails Again

By Loyd Matare

President Emmerson Mnangagwa was on Tuesday forced to complete his State of the Nation Address (SONA) using a torchlight after the New Parliament Building was plunged into total darkness—a moment that left the august House stunned and murmuring.

The unexpected blackout halted proceedings for several minutes, with some legislators shouting that it was an act of “sabotage” while others groped for their phones to provide light.

Despite the chaos, Mnangagwa remained composed, continuing to read his speech for nearly ten minutes under the faint glow of a torch, earning loud applause from ZANU PF lawmakers for his calm under pressure.

Power was eventually restored shortly after the President wrapped up his address, but the embarrassment had already sparked whispers of déjà vu across the chamber.

This was not the first time the government has faced such a public power failure during a high-profile event.

Last year, during Mnangagwa’s parliamentary address, a similar technical fault plunged proceedings into darkness, prompting ridicule on social media.

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This year, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga faced a comparable mishap at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) when electricity went off mid-speech and even the backup generators failed to kick in.

Tuesday’s incident added to a growing list of awkward moments exposing Zimbabwe’s fragile power infrastructure at events meant to showcase national stability and progress.

In the aftermath, Parliament Speaker Jacob Mudenda issued an apology and vowed retribution for whoever was responsible for the blackout.

“We see it proper that we apologise to the President for the power outage. We shall go beyond and chase the culprit.

“The person who switched off electricity while the President was speaking will regret the day he was born,” said Mudenda, drawing mixed reactions from MPs.