Zimbabwe needs a return to rule of law

Replacing President Emmerson Mnangagwa Mnangagwa with another corrupt elite while keeping the dysfunctional system intact will not deliver the change Zimbabweans demand and need, writes Al Jazeera columnist Tafi Mhaka. Mhaka says on 31 March, Zimbabwean security forces spent the entire day dispersing small gatherings of people who were trying to stage a peaceful protest against the ruling Zanu-PF party’s attempts to secure an unconstitutional third term for Mnangagwa. ‘By day’s end, the police had apprehended 95 demonstrators for allegedly promoting “public violence” and causing “breaches of peace”. However, the police did not manage to detain the man behind this protest, Blessed Geza. A veteran of the 1970s liberation war, Geza remains at large despite being sought by law enforcement on four criminal charges since February. Mhaka notes that Geza was expelled from Zanu-PF party on 6 March for supposedly undermining the party’s leadership by calling on Mnangagwa to step down. ‘Subsequently, on 26 March, Geza took to YouTube, dressed in military fatigues, to criticise Mnangagwa and many key figures associated with the 82-year-old leader.’ According to Mhaka, he warned that he was starting to take unspecified action against people who are accruing wealth through illegal means and looting the nation’s wealth. They include numerous government ministers, senior civil servants, party officials, war veterans and three wealthy, highly influential businessmen with close ties to the government who are widely believed to be corrupt: Scott Sakupwanya, Wicknell Chivayo and Kuda Tagwirei. 

Mhaka, says Chivayo, an ex-convict, allegedly made millions of dollars by selling exorbitantly priced electoral materials to Zimbabwean authorities for the highly disputed August 2023 general election. ‘Tagwirei is at least as controversial as Chivayo. A July 2023 report published by The Sentry and Open Secrets revealed how he built a shadowy business empire and enormous wealth using complex, controversial corporate structures and seemingly preferential government treatment. Former Finance Minister Tendai Biti has stated that Tagwirei controls the Southern African nation’s fuel sector, more than 60% of its gold mines, two of the largest banks and its only gold refinery. Mhaka states in Al Jazeera that for the past year, Zimbabwe’s leader has been trying to secure a third term even though he has publicly denied this goal and the Constitution restricts him to two terms. ‘This disastrous ambition, however, appears to be facing notable resistance from his deputy, Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, a former military chief. There is widespread speculation that Chiwenga, who still retains substantial backing within the Zimbabwean military, is the principal force driving Geza. On 27 March, Mnangagwa moved General Anselem Sanyatwe – a key Chiwenga ally – from the position of army chief to Minister of Sports, Art & Recreation in a manoeuvre to diminish Chiwenga’s influence among the defence forces.’ Mhaka believes the intensifying struggle for power may lead to a coup similar to the military takeover on 15 November 2017, led by Chiwenga, which ousted Zimbabwe’s strongman Robert Mugabe. ‘Nonetheless, the primary issue extends beyond Mnangagwa’s alarming malfeasance, as suggested by Geza. It lies in Zanu-PF’s conspicuous failure to establish a strong, effective and transparent democratic framework.'

'While Geza’s various perspectives on Zimbabwe’s governance challenges are certainly a positive contribution, his narrow-minded interpretations tend to oversimplify an extremely complex situation. Attributing Zimbabwe’s intricate issues solely to Mnangagwa’s unquestionably poor and (allegedly) corrupt leadership is both misleading and counterproductive. In truth, Chiwenga and Geza – a former Zanu-PF central committee member – are also deeply embedded in the systemic issues affecting Zimbabwe.’ Mhaka says in the Al Jazeera piece that from the early 1980s, prominent businessmen such as Samson Paweni and Roger Boka were closely linked to senior Zanu-PF officials and were allegedly involved in financial misconduct amounting to millions of dollars. ‘Thus, Geza’s evaluations are certainly superficial and fail to offer effective solutions to the ongoing democratic deficit in the nation. Rather than challenging the existing political structure, he aims to maintain the status quo, albeit with a new … The reality is that all factions within the ZANU-PF party – new, old and emerging – are woefully corrupt and shockingly averse to the rule of law.’ Mhaka concludes that simply swapping Mnangagwa for Chiwenga, a man whose sense of entitlement and lust for power far exceed his governance capabilities, will not yield the meaningful change that Zimbabweans aspire to achieve. ‘What Zimbabwe truly need is a comprehensive and democratic overhaul that garners support across civil society and the political divide. Any change must, for the first time in Zimbabwe’s 45-year history, give free and tangible expression to the rights enshrined in the Constitution.'

Full Al Jazeera analysis