THE Justice ministry is pretending to have “woken up”.
Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi and Prosecutor-General Loyce Matanda-Moyo claim they are disturbed by public anger over recent drug cases.
Nine foreign nationals were caught with cocaine in Harare.
Instead of being sentenced to jail, they walked free after paying a laughable fine of US$150 each.
Meanwhile, poor Zimbabweans are thrown into prison for petty crimes — stealing maize, a goat, even a loaf of bread, mothers imprisoned for selling vegetables without a licence, villagers fined for cutting firewood to survive.
They languish in prison for years, forgotten by the system.
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This is not about the courts alone.
It is about a culture of selective justice that Zanu PF has perfected.
The powerful, the connected and the wealthy glide through the system untouched.
For those with money, foreign passports or political connections, the law bends, softens and eventually lets them walk free.
On the other hand, the poor are crushed by it.
They languish in remand for years, unable to afford bail or legal representation.
Zimbabwe’s justice system is not broken by accident, but has been bent over decades to serve the powerful while punishing the powerless.
Cases involving gold smuggling, diamond theft or abuse of public funds collapse without consequence.
Witnesses vanish, dockets disappear or prosecutors simply lose interest.
Now Ziyambi talks about “specialised courts”. That is just theatre.
Matanda-Moyo, meanwhile, says the outrage shows the need for fairness and transparency in the justice system.
Both are correct to recognise the issue, but they miss the heart of the matter.
The real problem is political capture and double standards.
The justice system serves the ruling elite and its allies, not the people.
Zanu PF must stop using the law as a weapon against the powerless and a shield for the powerful, lest there will never be true justice in Zimbabwe.
The law must be blind, not a tool of convenience for the rich and well-connected.
In the case of the nine Chinese nationals, their sentence is not just a legal issue; it is political.
For decades, Zanu PF has cultivated a culture of selective justice.
The justice system is too often used as a shield for the powerful and a blunt weapon against the weak.
It is why corruption cases involving politically-connected individuals rarely see convictions.
It is why drug peddlers with resources pay their way out, while youths caught with small quantities of marijuana face life-changing penalties.
The minister is wrong to think “specialised courts” alone can fix this.
What Zimbabwe needs is not more bureaucracy, but political will.
We need a justice system that is independent, adequately funded, free from capture and committed to equality before the law.
Until then, announcements like these are little more than stunts designed to pacify public anger.
Justice, if it is to mean anything, must be blind.
It must not distinguish between rich and poor, foreigner and local, the politically connected and ordinary citizens.
Zimbabweans deserve a system where the law is applied fairly, transparently and consistently.
We need a Judiciary that is truly independent.
Prosecutors who pursue cases without fear or favour.
Laws that apply equally, whether one is a villager in Gokwe or a tycoon in Harare.
Justice must be blind or else it ceases to be justice at all.
Zimbabweans deserve a system where accountability is real, corruption is punished, and wealth and political connections do not buy immunity.
This dual system is corrosive.
It destroys public trust in institutions, fuels resentment and signals to the powerful that impunity is guaranteed.
And until it is dismantled, Zimbabwe cannot claim to uphold the rule of law.
Until that day comes, the truth will remain bitter and undeniable: there is one law for the poor and another for the rich.