ZIMBABWEAN dictator Robert Mugabe was yesterday said to be fighting for his life in a Singapore hospital with an undisclosed illness, amid reports he had agreed to hand over power to his feared Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa.

The Zimbabwe Mail, quoting a senior official of Mugabe's ZANU-PF party, said the President was undergoing intensive treatment in Singapore and that some members of his family had joined him after boarding a chartered private jet on Saturday.

The alarm was raised when the government postponed a cabinet meeting set for today.

"The Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Dr Misheck Sibanda, wishes to inform all members of cabinet that sitting has been moved from Tuesday, April 10, to Thursday, April 12, 2012," Mugabe spokesman George Charamba said.

Mugabe was flown to Singapore last week after collapsing at his home. The official line, however, is that the dictator was in Singapore to oversee the arrangements for his daughter Bona to study at university. Singapore University registration starts in September.

A June 2008 US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks last month said Mugabe has prostate cancer that has spread to other organs. He was urged by his physician to step down in 2008, but has stayed in the job.

The cable written by James D. McGee, the former US ambassador in Harare cites Zimbabwe's Central Bank governor Gideon Gono was as saying the cancer could lead to Mugabe's death in three to five years.

Diplomats told the Zimbabwe Mail Mugabe has slowed down by decreasing the number of meetings he holds, but his visits to Singapore for medical checks have increased.

The Mail quoted a British-based Zimbabwe analyst, who wished to remain anonymous: "Mugabe's health impacts entirely on Zimbabwe's political landscape. Everything revolves around his health and his age."

Deal to hand over power

The Tehran Times yesterday said Mugabe had entered into a "gentlemen's agreement" to hand over power to Mnangagwa, 65, who helped orchestrate Mugabe's battle against white rule in the 1970s.

The pact was alleged to have taken place at State House in Harare in April 2008, after Mugabe failed to secure an outright majority over his rival MorganTsvangirai.

Mr Mnangagwa, the former head of the Zimbabwean Central Intelligence Organisation, was appointed campaign manager by Mugabe during the 2008 presidential election and was widely blamed for the brutality after Tsvangirai, edged ahead in the first round of voting.

With AFP/The Australian

