Phelekezela Mphoko (born 11 June 1940) is a

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

an politician, diplomat, businessman and former military commander who served as Second

Vice-President of Zimbabwe The vice-president of Zimbabwe is the second highest political position obtainable in Zimbabwe. Currently there is a provision for two vice-presidents, who are appointed by the president of Zimbabwe. The vice-presidents are designated as "Fir ...

from 2014 until 2017, as well as Zimbabwe's ambassador to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

. Legally, Mphoko was the acting

President of Zimbabwe The president of Zimbabwe is the head of state of Zimbabwe and head of the executive branch of the government of Zimbabwe. The president chairs the national cabinet and is the chief commanding authority of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces. The ...

from 21–24 November 2017, however, as he was not in the country at the time, official standing on this is unclear. Mphoko's term as vice-president was ended by President

Emmerson Mnangagwa Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa (, US: (); born 15 September 1942) is a Zimbabwean politician who has served as President of Zimbabwe since 24 November 2017. A member of ZANU–PF and a longtime ally of former President Robert Mugabe, he held a ...

following the dissolution of the cabinet on 27 November 2017.

Life and career

After independence

Mphoko served as Zimbabwe's Ambassador to

and

before being transferred to

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothi ...

as Ambassador to South Africa. On 10 December 2014, President Mugabe finally appointed Mphoko as Vice-President, alongside

(who represented the ZANU wing of the party). Mugabe also assigned Mphoko the ministerial portfolio of National Healing, Peace and Reconciliation. He was sworn in as Vice-President on 12 December 2014. On 6 July 2015, Mugabe assigned Mphoko responsibility for coordination and implementation of policy."Chombo, Moyo, Tyson reassigned"
''The Herald'', 7 July 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mphoko, Phelekezela 1940 births Ambassadors of Zimbabwe to Botswana Ambassadors of Zimbabwe to Russia Ambassadors of Zimbabwe to South Africa Living people Vice-presidents of Zimbabwe Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army personnel Zimbabwean diplomats Zimbabwean Seventh-day Adventists People from Matabeleland North Province ZANU–PF politicians