Zimbabwe's lawyer dominated political leaders are corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless. They created a sewage pond! W Mukori

 Most of Zimbabwe's leading politicians are lawyers. Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti, David Coltart, Welshman Ncube, and even President Emmerson Mnangagwa all come from legal backgrounds. The one prominent engineer who often comes to mind in politics is Elias Mudzuri, but even his presence in national debates has been overshadowed by factional squabbles with another lawyer, Douglas Mwonzora.

This dominance of legal minds in Zimbabwean politics is not without consequence. It may help explain why governance in the country relies heavily on statutory instruments - complex legal rules that regulate everyday life - rather than on tangible, large-scale projects that could drive development.

Dan Wang, a Chinese-born Canadian analyst, highlights this contrast vividly in his book Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future. He argues that China is run by engineers, while the United States is run by lawyers, and that this difference shapes their trajectories. Engineers focus on building - railways, factories, and power plants - while lawyers tend to emphasise processes, legal frameworks, and regulation.

Wang points out that in 2002, all nine members of China's Politburo Standing Committee had engineering backgrounds. This technocratic leadership prioritised construction on a massive scale, giving rise to bullet trains, world-class airports, and advanced manufacturing hubs. Meanwhile, in the US, where law degrees dominate political leadership, projects like California's high-speed rail have been bogged down in lawsuits, environmental reviews, and spiralling costs.

The same parallel resonates in Zimbabwe. Decades after independence, the country still struggles with crumbling infrastructure, power shortages, and stalled mega-projects. Yet, legal battles, constitutional wrangles, and endless political disputes dominate the headlines. Zimbabwean politics often appears trapped in the courtroom rather than the construction site.

Consider the contrast: China completed its Beijing–Shanghai bullet train in just three years at a cost of $36 billion, carrying more than a billion passengers in its first decade. Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe, flagship projects like the Batoka Gorge hydropower station or the expansion of Hwange Power Station are perpetually delayed, weighed down by financing problems, political disagreements, and governance challenges.

Of course, lawyers play a critical role in defending rights, upholding constitutionalism, and curbing authoritarian excesses. But Wang's thesis raises uncomfortable questions for countries like Zimbabwe: Has the overrepresentation of lawyers in politics tilted the nation towards endless legalism and away from the kind of hard engineering mindset required to rebuild a struggling economy?

China's rise demonstrates the power of an "engineering state" that prizes building over arguing. Zimbabwe, facing an infrastructure deficit and economic stagnation, might need more leaders who think like builders - literally. Until then, it risks remaining a nation of statutory instruments and policy pronouncements, without the highways, factories, and power grids to match.”

A good read to every thinking Zimbabwean out there!

What has made Zimbabwe’s situation even worse is that our lawyer politician are corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless. Look at the country’s constitution for example, one would think the 2013 Constitution would be water tight in guaranteeing the individual freedoms and rights given it was written by brigades of lawyers in both Zanu PF and MDC. It has failed to deliver any freedoms and rights because it is a weak and feeble constitution.

“Mugabe dictated the new constitution,” boasted MP Paul Mangwana, the Zanu PF co-chair of the parliamentary committee tasked to draft the new constitution. Only a fool would expect a democratic constitution from the dictator!

If the people of Zimbabwe were to bite the bullet and demand democratic reforms designed to dismantle the dysfunctional dictatorship and put the nation back on a democratic footing the current crop of failed politicians will be weeded out. Zimbabwe’s present political system is but a sewage pond, you will never get quality fish there. We need to drain the swamp and fill it with clean water and quality fish will return and thrive!

Zimbabwe is a failed state - a damning testimonial to country's hijacked liberation struggle. What's there to celebrate! W Mukori

 Zimbabwe is a failed state.

Zimbabwe’s true liberation heroes and heroines know that we are a failed state and, per se, this is not the Zimbabwe they wanted. They would not join the Zanu PF thugs celebrating Heroes Day knowing the thugs hijack the revolution for their own personal gain and gratification. And, worst of all, the Zanu PF thugs falsely claiming that the nation’s struggle for freedom, justice and human dignity is done and dusted, Zanu PF delivered the coup de grace with the defeat of the white colonial rule in 1980. A liar!

In 1980 the nation swapped the white colonial oppressors for black ones.

If you believe the alpha and omega of the liberation struggle was to remove whites from power; then the very fact that Zimbabwe is a failed in which millions are living in abject poverty denied the basic freedoms and human rights - proof the tyranny and oppression has continued post indolence - is irrelevant. 

Zimbabwe’s true national heroes are turning in their graves to see theZimbabwe they fought hard to free from white colonial oppression a failed state and millions of Zimbabweans suffering so. Of course, they would not join the Zanu PF thugs in the Heroes Day Celebration because there really is nothing for the nation to celebrate. If Mbuya Nehanda and Secure Kaguvi would not be seen dead in the company of thugs like Mnangagwa why would any thinking Zimbabwean want to keep the company of the thugs who have brought such despair, suffering and death to the nation.

olence  is we must celebrate. But if you believe the fight was for much more - to secure the freedoms, human rights, justice, peace and economic prosperity for all Zimbabweans; then there really is nothing to celebrate. Nothing!

Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies disregarding all the values and principles of the revolution, to promote their selfish interest. In 1980, Mugabe and company made is clear that if Zanu PF did not win the 1980 elections, the bush war would continue. Of course the people voted to end the bush war and with that decision they lost forever their right to a meaning say in the governance of the country for decades thereafter. 

SADC pressured Zanu PF to accept a number of changes making Zimbabwe’s March 2008 elections the nearest the nation has ever come to holding free, fair and credible elections. The people voted for regime change. 

When it was clear Zanu PF had lost the election, Mnangagwa and Chiwenga stopped ZEC from declaring the results. They instigated a vote recount, blatantly cheating to give MDC just a marginal lead in parliament and whittle down Tsvangirai’s 73% votes, according to Mugabe’s Freudian slip, to 47%; enough to force a run off. 

Zanu PF subjected the nation to the worst election related violence in the country’s history. The party carried out a military style Operation Mavhotera Papi whose purpose was to punish the people for rejecting Zanu PF in the March vote. Millions were internally displaced, hundreds of thousands had their properties destroyed, were beaten and/or rapped. Over 500 were murdered in cold blood. 

“What was achieved by the bullet cannot be changed by the pen!” thundered Robert Mugabe. Egging on the party’s militia and war veterans, who were Operation Mavhotera Papi’s foot soldiers harassing and beating povo whilst the Army, Police, CIO and Prison Services personal carried out the heavy duty work of abducting and killing.   

SADC and AU refuged to recognise Zanu PF regime’s legitimacy following the marred 2008 election process and forced Mugabe & co. to accept 2008 to 2013 GNU. The primary purpose of the GNU was to implement the democratic reforms to end the Zanu PF dictatorship and put the nation back on a democratic footing. 

Mugabe bribed Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends with the trappings of high office and they failed to implement even one token reform. And so Zanu PF emerged out of the GNU with all its dictatorial powers intact with the bonus of having an opposition that would participate in elections regardless how flawed and illegal the process got for a few gravy train seats! 

The ordinary people have been slow to realise that MDC/CCC leaders are Zanu PF team B in all but name, playing for team A to win and have legitimacy. 

Chamisa lied to his brain dead followers that he plugging vote rigging loop holes and millions believed the idiotic lie and participated in the flawed 2023 elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and perpetuate the nation’s suffering. Chamisa is set to repeat the idiotic lie to con the naive and gullible millions to participate in flawed 2028 with the same tragic consequences.

Zimbabwe is a failed state, the text book pariah state ruled by corrupt, incompetent and murderous thugs who rig elections to stay in power. Zanu PF has managed to rig elections and get away with it with the connivance of MDC/CCC leaders. 

Ending white colonial rule was a necessary step to secure the freedoms and human rights and dignity we, the blacks, were denied by the whites. Ending white rule was as necessary as breaking the egg to make the omelette. After 45 years of Zanu PF blatantly rigging the elections, denying us the masses a meaningful vote it is clear that we got the empty egg shell and Zanu PF thugs have kept the omelette for themselves.

The people should have never given up their right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country back in 1980. Never ever! Not even when one was looking up the business end of an AK47, because, looking back the last 45 years, it is clear the nation did not secure the peace and has gone on to lose everything as the Zanu PF thugs have come back again and again to demand more and more.

“Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither the Liberty nor Safety.” advised Benjamin Franklin, one of America’s founding fathers and scientist. He was right.

Zimbabwe has become the by-word of failed state in which millions are suffering in dumb anguish and despair. There really is no cause to celebrate a failed state!

There are "Varakashi4ED" in social media and everywhere. How did we come to this! W Mukori

 “Zimbabwe’s ruling ZANU PF party, under President Emmerson Mnangagwa, is increasingly relying on coordinated social media campaigns to silence dissent, with a particular focus on women activists and opposition voices. These online operatives, widely known as "Varakashi4ED" (meaning “destroyers for Emmerson Dambudzo (ED) Mnangagwa“ in Shona), use anonymous and fake accounts primarily on the platform X (formerly Twitter) to mock, delegitimize, and threaten those who challenge the government,” reported Bulawayo 24.

“Allegations have surfaced implicating senior government figures, including President Mnangagwa's spokesperson George Charamba, in managing or supporting these toxic ghost accounts. Activists warn that these campaigns are not isolated incidents but part of a systematic strategy funded with taxpayers' money to suppress political opposition and stifle freedom of expression.”

If the truth be said - and it must be said now more than even or we will all be silenced - this comes as no surprise. 

Mnangagwa is a ruthless thug who has stopped at nothing to get what he wants - absolute power. After 45 years at the pinnacle of political power and all the influence and wealth that power with no accountability brings he has become addicted to it and hungers to stay on. His arrogance and ruthlessness have increased over the years to match his increased power. He is determination to stay on at all costs.

The 2023 Aljazeera Gold Mafia documentary revealed how 80% of Zimbabwe’s US$2 billion per year gold mining was being smuggled and President Mnangagwa was named as the godfather at the heart of it all. The wholesale looting is taking place in other areas too such as diamond, lithium, platinum and other minerals. Government contracts such as the supply of 2023 ZEC election materials to Wicknell Chivhayo have become another conduit for looting. He gets a cut in all these activities!

Mnangagwa is filthy rich and he has channeled some of the looted wealth to pay for the military style operations whose primary purpose is to make sure he retains an iron grip on political power at all costs. 

Mnangagwa must have spend US$5 billion, at least, to secure the presidency in the 2023 elections. He bought chicken and chips for the hired povo bused from one rally to the next, bought cars for chief and church leaders, MPs, judges and ministers received US$ 40k, 400k and 500k “housing loans” respectively. 

As soon as he secured the 2023 presidency, work started on making sure he stayed beyond the 2028, beyond the maximum two term stipulated in the constitution.  Many Zanu PF leaders objected to this but by the time the party held its conference in December 2024, they had all been whipped into line. The conference passed a resolution that Mnangagwa must stay in office till 2030. 

In January 2025, Blessed Geza and a few fellow war veterans resurrected the objection to Mnangagwa staying in power beyond 2028. The next six months saw Mnangagwa implement one initiative after another to improve the lives of war veterans and buy their support. Many of the war veterans received one or more of the following gifts bicycle, car, new house equipped with solar power and borehole water, financial assistance from a presidential revolving fund, etc., etc.

“Have the war veterans who were given houses received the title deeds to the house and the land?” I asked one Zanu PF crony. 

“Saviour Kasukuwere, Jonathan Moyo and many others had title deeds to their large mansions and farms; they left them in a huff!” she answered. 

“Forget about the Social Media Varakashi4ED, they are harmless. Mnangagwa has battalions of Varakashi4ED, spies and killers, everywhere.

“Mnangagwa is not clever, he is a buffoon, and he who knows that and this makes he fearful and suspicious of every one. When he is not sure of anything he instinctively reaches for the gun - brute force, his strength.

In Mnangagwa’s Zimbabwe, everyone is a potential threat to his singular goal to stay in power and, when the time comes, to pass the baton to his chosen successor. Fear rules the land!” She concluded with dread and hopelessness. 

There are Varakashi4ED everywhere! Destroyers4ED! How have we come to this?