Rwandans moved closer to handing President Paul Kagame a third term in office when parliament overwhelmingly voted to adopt a report on more than 3.7 million petitions by citizens who want the supreme law amended to remove presidential term limits.

Legislators in the Senate and the lower Chamber of Deputies said amending the Constitution to accommodate the petitioners’ wish was legitimate but called for further consultations with the citizenry to interrogate other demands for amendments to the law.

However, the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, which has opposed plans to do away with term limits, said it hoped that the Supreme Court would block the process. The highest court is set to hear the opposition party’s case, which seeks to stop plans to amend Article 101 to remove term limits.

Frank Habineza, the president of the party, said the members were “disappointed by the developments in parliament but we are confident that the Supreme Court can halt the process that MPs started.

“We think parliament started that first phase of what will be a long process to a referendum.”

On Tuesday, when the historic vote was made, hundreds of people went to the parliament buildings in buses to look on as both Houses opened discussions on the legal basis of the petitions, which were delivered to parliament over the past couple of months.

With no one objecting to a change of the Constitution, for six hours legislators spoke in praise of the Rwandan leader and said that they could not go against the wishes of millions of Rwandans.

“More than three million Rwandans have spoken; we have seen many Rwandans speak through their different groupings. What else should the House wait for, rather than addressing the demands of the people?” asked Juvenal Nkusi, a member of the Liberal Party (PL).

Leading political parties in Rwanda, including PL and the Social Democratic Party (PSD), have come out in support of the campaign to amend the Constitution to remove term limits, in a move that is likely to see President Kagame and his ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) Inkotanyi party stay put in 2017.

President Kagame has maintained that he is ready to respect the Constitution but urged a “healthy debate” on the matter, saying he needs to be “convinced” by the side that says he should stay in power.

“I believe what has happened here is convincing enough,” said Abas Mukama, the deputy Speaker. “It is the first time that Rwandans have come out to exercise their freedom of choice and I think what Rwandans have done here and what MPs have expressed is enough to convince President Kagame.”

Describing the head of state as a “saviour” and a “champion of democracy, development, security and stability,” MPs unanimously voted in favour of removing term limits to ensure that President Kagame is not “locked out” while Rwandans still need him.

“We cannot deny ourselves an opportunity of having President Kagame because we fear what the international community or foreigners will think of us,” said another MP, Edouard Bamporiki, adding that the matter should be left to Rwandans to decide.

Only the Green Party and an individual petitioner to parliament had expressed their disapproval of the proposed amendment, with the former challenging the move in court.

Vitus Nshimiyimana of Eastern Province said in a letter that the president had not delivered on all his 2010 promises when he was re-elected for his second and final term of seven years.

Following the vote, political analysts have dismissed the Green Party’s court case as irrelevant.