Can the government separate policy ambition from patronage-based execution?

By Dhibhora Mufandaedza | Oct 30, 2025 | 3 Min read

The most striking resolution and arguably the most politically charged is the call to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term by two years from 2028 to 2030.

THE resolutions adopted at the 22nd Zanu PF annual national conference in Mutare recently reveal the twin forces shaping Zimbabwe’s political and policy landscape.

It is no doubt these forces are the consolidation of political power and the ambition for developmental reform.

One would think that at face value, the resolutions project a bold vision of economic revival, infrastructure modernisation, gender equality and social protection.

Yet, beneath these progressive declarations lies a clear pattern of political centralisation and ideological control that raises serious questions about the future of democratic governance in Zimbabwe.

For me, the most striking resolution and arguably the most politically charged is the call to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term by two years from 2028 to 2030.

The directive that the party’s legal affairs department must implement this by next year’s conference signals a determined effort to amend and reinterpret constitutional term limits.

The supporters of this idea frame the move as a bid for stability and continuity, arguing that long-term leadership is essential to see through Vision 2030 reforms.

But I am personally of the view that it is merely an attempt to erode constitutional safeguards and weaken institutional checks on power.

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Zimbabwe’s 2013 Constitution introduced term limits precisely to prevent this type of manipulation.

To now revisit those limits, under the guise of stability, only risks returning the country to a cycle where personal rule overrides institutional legitimacy.

Equally revealing is the call for the deployment of ideologically grounded cadres in the civil service.

This may sound like a patriotic appeal for loyalty to national values, but it also suggests a further fusion of the party and State.

A professional and independent civil service is the backbone of effective governance, this cannot be argued.

However, if public servants are selected or promoted based on party loyalty rather than competence, the result is not ideological coherence but administrative decay.

This move risks politicising the public sector at a time when Zimbabwe urgently needs technocratic efficiency to rebuild the economy.

Additionally, the pledge to strengthen the ZiG currency and make it the sole legal tender, surely reflects a “desire” for monetary sovereignty.

Yet confidence in a national currency cannot be commanded through resolutions, but must be earned through macroeconomic stability and fiscal credibility.

Since its introduction, ZiG remains fragile and confidence in this currency cannot be legislated into existence.

The Women’s Affairs resolutions reaffirm a commitment to 50/50 gender participation, financial empowerment for women and local economic protection for citizens.

Without any doubt, these are positive steps, consistent with the Constitution’s gender equality provisions.

However, women’s empowerment cannot flourish in a political environment dominated by elite networks and symbolic gestures.

Taken as a whole, most of the resolutions blend visionary developmental goals with a calculated strategy of political control.

They outline economic modernisation, gender inclusion and infrastructure renewal, but within a political framework that increasingly concentrates authority in the Executive and blurs the distinction between party and State.

Zimbabwe stands at a critical crossroads, a juncture where political ambition collides with the hard realities of economic constraints, institutional fragility and social vulnerability.

The resolutions adopted at the 2025 Zanu PF annual national conference articulate an expansive vision for transformation, yet they unfold within a context defined by deep fiscal limitations, infrastructural decay and governance bottlenecks.

These structural constraints pose formidable challenges to translating political intent to policy outcomes.

Without credible implementation strategies, robust oversight mechanisms and fiscal discipline, most of the proposed initiatives risk remaining aspirational rather than transformative.

Developmental rhetoric alone cannot substitute for institutional capacity, transparency or public accountability.

The success of these resolutions will depend on the extent to which the State can rebuild trust, professionalise the civil service and insulate policy from partisan capture.

The good news is that if implemented with transparency and respect for constitutional principles, perhaps some of these resolutions could accelerate significant development in key areas such as infrastructure, gender empowerment and industrial modernisation.

The challenge and opportunity lie in whether Zimbabwe’s leadership can transcend political consolidation and embrace institutional reform as the foundation of sustainable national development.