Zimbabweans should not be expected to celebrate exploitation and repression

In my writings demanding social justice for ordinary Zimbabweans, I often face pushback from those who accuse me of focusing solely on the negatives.

They question why I rarely highlight or acknowledge the so-called positive things being done by the Zimbabwean government for the people.

On the surface, this might appear to be a valid criticism.

After all, no individual, institution, or government is entirely terrible such that nothing good can be said about them.

As such, focusing only on the negatives may seem counterintuitive, even disingenuous, as if I harbor some personal animosity towards those in power and seek to denigrate them at every turn.

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This prompted me to take a step back and consider: what are the positives that the Mnangagwa regime has achieved for Zimbabweans?

Indeed, there are flagship projects that the government touts as major accomplishments—the expansion of the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport, the addition of Units 7 and 8 at Hwange Power Station, and the redevelopment of the Beitbridge border post.

There have also been efforts to rehabilitate some of the country’s roads, construct a few dams, schools, and clinics, as well as distribute free agricultural inputs and food aid to rural communities.

Additionally, boreholes have been drilled, and the government has overseen significant investments in the mining sector, particularly in diamonds, lithium, black granite, and gold.

On paper, these initiatives seem commendable and deserving of applause.

However, before Zimbabweans rush to celebrate these so-called positives, a deeper analysis is required.

Is it truly an achievement that a country endowed with over 60 valuable minerals still has citizens dependent on free agricultural inputs and food aid?

This is not a sign of prosperity but of systemic poverty and failure.

How can a nation blessed with such vast natural wealth still have a population that cannot afford to cultivate its own crops or purchase food without state assistance, even in drought years?

Many countries exist in arid and drought-prone regions yet do not constantly declare states of disaster or rely on food aid.

Take Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar—nations located in desert climates.

Despite their harsh environmental conditions, their governments have ensured that their citizens enjoy high living standards through proper management of their natural resources.

The key difference is that these countries, despite having only two major resources—oil and gas—have governments that ensure the wealth reaches their people.

Their citizens are not reduced to begging for sustenance.

So why should Zimbabweans celebrate a government that hands out free agricultural inputs and food aid instead of ensuring that they can independently sustain themselves?

The same applies to Zimbabwe’s roads.

We have all seen the breathtaking road networks in cities such as Dubai, Doha, and Riyadh, built from the wealth derived from just two resources.

Yet in Zimbabwe, a country far richer in natural resources, we are expected to celebrate when the government patches up or resurfaces old colonial-era roads built by Ian Smith.

The few truly new roads that have been constructed are often of such poor quality that within two years, they are already riddled with potholes.

Is this what we should consider progress?

Should we applaud a government that fails to build durable infrastructure despite decades in power?

Hospitals and schools are another area where the government claims achievements, yet the reality tells a different story.

Yes, some schools and clinics have been built, but they are few and grossly under-equipped.

Many lack essential facilities, trained personnel, and necessary supplies.

That is why, 45 years after independence, Zimbabwe’s education sector still records abysmal results, with national Ordinary Level pass rates barely exceeding 30% and some schools persistently recording 0% pass rates.

In the healthcare sector, horror stories abound—patients sleeping on the floor, hospitals without basic medication, and a lack of functional radiotherapy machines and ambulances.

What is there to celebrate about the construction of empty shells that fail to provide meaningful services to the people?

The government may boast about expanding airports and border posts, but how does this directly benefit the average Zimbabwean?

The expansion of Hwange Power Station with two additional units did little to alleviate the crippling electricity crisis.

Zimbabweans still endure up to 18-hour blackouts.

How does one justify celebrating the addition of two units when the entire power plant is on the verge of collapse?

With all the wealth at the government’s disposal, why has Zimbabwe failed to construct modern power plants capable of not only meeting local demand but also exporting electricity?

Other nations with far fewer resources have managed to do so.

Then there is the informal sector, which government officials have touted as a game changer and a response to the country’s economic challenges.

While it is true that the informal sector has provided livelihoods for millions, it is also a hotbed of exploitation.

Workers are underpaid, overworked, and often subjected to various forms of abuse, including sexual harassment.

Job security is non-existent, and employees lack basic benefits such as medical insurance, social security, or pensions.

The unregulated nature of the sector poses a significant risk to economic stability, as evidenced by the recent closure and downsizing of major retail chains, further increasing unemployment in a country where the jobless rate already hovers around 90%.

But how did Zimbabwe end up with such a vast and unregulated informal sector in the first place?

This is the direct result of economic mismanagement by those in authority, characterized by poor, inconsistent, and illogical policies that have stifled formal job creation.

The government’s failure to create an environment conducive to investment and business growth has forced millions into precarious and unstable employment.

Rather than being a sign of resilience, the informal sector is an indictment of the government’s failure to provide real economic opportunities for its people.

The most pressing question remains: where is Zimbabwe’s wealth going?

While the government claims that it has attracted foreign investment, particularly from Chinese companies, these entities have done more harm than good.

Communities have been forcibly displaced from their ancestral lands without fair compensation, and the environmental destruction caused by these mining operations is unimaginable.

Workers are subjected to inhumane treatment, and reports have surfaced of employees being physically assaulted or even killed by their Chinese employers.

Despite these atrocities, the government turns a blind eye because members of the ruling elite have vested interests in these companies.

Worse still, most of the revenue generated from Zimbabwe’s vast mineral resources never makes it into state coffers due to corruption and smuggling.

The country loses over $3 billion annually to illicit financial activities.

According to the latest Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (CPI), Zimbabwe ranks as the most corrupt country in southern Africa, with a score of 21 out of 100.

Is it any wonder, then, that Zimbabwe remains one of the poorest nations in the world?

This is why Zimbabweans cannot and should not be expected to celebrate the mediocrity that the Mnangagwa regime attempts to pass off as progress.

What is there to celebrate when we know exactly what this country is capable of achieving if its resources were properly managed?

Zimbabweans should not be content with the crumbs that fall from the table of opulence where only a select few dine.

They deserve the kind of prosperity enjoyed by citizens of well-managed resource-rich countries.

Why should we celebrate boreholes when people in other nations, even in rural areas, have running water in their homes?

Zimbabweans are acutely aware of what their country can and should deliver.

They know what they deserve, and there is absolutely nothing positive to write about the Mnangagwa regime, no matter how hard one tries.

• Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/