1. Constantino Chiwenga was educated up to O Level at St Mary's Mission in Hwedza, together with former students: Perrance Shiri, later Air Marshal, and Shungurirai, later Brigadier General and Commander Mechanised Brigade.
23 Facts About Constantino Chiwenga
1. 2.
Constantino Chiwenga went on to earn a PhD in Ethics from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in 2015.
3.
In 2019, suffering from an undisclosed ailment, Constantino Chiwenga checked into a South African hospital.
4.
Constantino Chiwenga married Colonel MIniyothabo Baloyi a serving member of the Zimbabwe National Army in June 2022.
5.
Constantino Chiwenga joined the war in 1973 and was trained in Mozambique as a ZANLA militant.
6.
Constantino Chiwenga was later promoted to the High Command in 1978 to the post of ZANLA Deputy Political Commissar as Josiah Tungamirai's deputy.
7.
Constantino Chiwenga was later promoted to the rank of major general and reverted to his original name of Constantine Chiwenga.
8.
Constantino Chiwenga was expelled from the course after refusing to name the junior officer who had given him the paper.
9.
Constantino Chiwenga then went on to shoot himself through the right shoulder in an attempt to end his life and was admitted at Parirenyatwa Hospital in Harare.
10.
Constantino Chiwenga is the chairman of the Joint Operations Command, which comprises the commanders of ZNA, Prison Services, Central Intelligence Organisation, Zimbabwe Republic Police and the Air Force of Zimbabwe.
11.
Constantino Chiwenga participated actively during the Zimbabwe land reform programme, and is a beneficiary of the land seizures with a thriving farm near Harare.
12.
Zimbabwe's government announced on 18 December 2017 that Constantino Chiwenga was set to retire pending redeployment.
13.
On 28 December 2017 Constantino Chiwenga was sworn in as co-vice president of the Republic of Zimbabwe, serving together with former Security minister Kembo Mohadi.
14.
Meanwhile, Constantino Chiwenga was on an official visit to China, where he learned that Mugabe had ordered his arrest upon his return to Zimbabwe.
15.
However, soldiers loyal to Constantino Chiwenga, disguised as baggage handlers, overpowered the police at the airport and cleared the way for his arrival on 12 November 2017.
16.
On 13 November 2017, Constantino Chiwenga released a press statement chastising those responsible for the dismissals of government officials in the ruling ZANU-PF party.
17.
Constantino Chiwenga warned that the armed forces would be forced to intervene should the "purging" not stop.
18.
Days before the coup, Constantino Chiwenga visited China to meet senior Chinese military leaders, including Generals Chang Wanquan and Li Zuocheng.
19.
Constantino Chiwenga's visit to China has come under scrutiny, with speculation that he had sought Beijing's tacit approval for a possible move against Mugabe.
20.
Constantino Chiwenga was appointed as the Minister of Defence and War Veterans Affairs on the next day.
21.
Constantino Chiwenga was appointed Minister of Health and Child Care in August 2020.
22.
Constantino Chiwenga succeeded Obadiah Moyo who was sacked a month earlier over corruption in awarding coronavirus testing contracts.
23.
Constantino Chiwenga inherited a corruption-ridden department with a disorganized response to the covid-19 pandemic.