Opinion / Columnist
While ordinary Zimbabweans' belts are squeezed, Zvigananda are allowed to grow fat with impunity
2 hrs ago | 25 Views
The contradictions in this country are stark: the poor are made to suffer even more, while politically connected thieves remain protected.
The Zimbabwean government's Treasury Circular Number 10 of 2025, imposing sweeping austerity measures, is being presented as a necessary step to restore budget credibility and enforce fiscal discipline.
To directly receive articles from Tendai Ruben Mbofana, please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08
Ministries are now required to operate strictly within their 2025 budget allocations.
Unbudgeted spending is declared void, contracts require Treasury approval, foreign travel is curtailed, workshops are restricted, fuel allocations slashed by 25 percent, and hiring frozen except in narrowly defined "critical" sectors.
On paper, these measures suggest prudence.
In reality, they punish ordinary Zimbabweans while leaving the nation's true financial plunderers untouched.
Fuel allocations offer a glaring example of this misdirected austerity.
Police and ambulance services are already struggling to respond to emergencies because of chronic shortages.
A further 25 percent cut will not restore fiscal discipline; it will cost lives.
Citizens in rural areas, who already wait hours or even days for ambulances, may be left to suffer entirely.
Hospitals may defer critical procedures, clinics may remain without transport for outreach programs, and police response to crime will likely worsen.
In effect, austerity is being enforced on those least able to bear it, turning fiscal discipline into a matter of life and death for the public.
Meanwhile, the real drain on the treasury—the tenderpreneurs and politically connected elites—remains largely untouched.
Zimbabwe loses over US$4 billion annually to these actors.
They exploit opaque procurement systems, inflate contract values, and in some cases, never deliver the projects for which they have been paid.
Roads remain unbuilt, schools remain half-finished, and medical equipment remains undelivered—all while payments have already been made and billions have been siphoned into private accounts.
Some of these individuals have acquired state assets and properties through questionable payments from the treasury, yet they operate with impunity because the very officials who should enforce the law benefit from their activities.
The disconnect between policy and reality could not be starker.
While ordinary citizens face hiring freezes, travel bans, and deferred capital projects, the corrupt few continue to amass wealth without fear of reprisal.
Fuel cuts, conference restrictions, and travel freezes are cosmetic measures—they target visible expenses rather than addressing structural rot.
They are symbolic sacrifices that punish the innocent while leaving the guilty untouched.
Zimbabweans are being asked to tighten their belts while the tenderpreneurs walk freely, protected by the same government claiming to enforce fiscal discipline.
This inequity is morally indefensible.
Tenderpreneurs operate with impunity, enriching themselves through contracts awarded without proper tendering procedures.
Some deals are ghost projects: money disappears, work is never done, and payments are made regardless.
High-ranking officials are often complicit, turning a blind eye or directly benefiting, reinforcing a culture of impunity that permeates every level of government.
Meanwhile, citizens who rely on health, education, and security services are punished for the very corruption that cripples those services in the first place.
The austerity measures also risk hollowing out critical public institutions.
The freeze on recruitment affects health, education, and security, which are already underfunded.
Hospitals continue to operate with limited staff and outdated equipment.
Schools struggle with teacher shortages and crumbling infrastructure.
Police forces, tasked with maintaining law and order, are left with constrained resources, unable to respond effectively to crime.
Cutting funding to essential services under the pretext of fiscal consolidation threatens to deepen social suffering rather than alleviate it.
The government's insistence on restricting contracts without targeting corruption is a glaring contradiction.
Treasury Circular 10 mandates that any contract above US$2 million requires prior written approval and that smaller contracts remain within budget.
Yet history demonstrates that those with political influence routinely bypass these controls, award themselves lucrative deals, and enjoy protection from prosecution.
Until Zimbabwe confronts these tenderpreneurs and enforces accountability, austerity directed at ordinary citizens is a hollow exercise that will worsen inequality and deepen mistrust in public institutions.
The human cost of this approach cannot be overstated.
Citizens who already endure inflation, power cuts, and a struggling healthcare system are being asked to bear the brunt of austerity, while the corrupt few thrive.
Ambulance services that fail to respond to emergencies, hospitals that defer life-saving procedures, and police who cannot patrol effectively are not theoretical concerns—they are daily realities for Zimbabweans.
Yet the government presents this suffering as a necessary sacrifice, ignoring the billions lost annually to elite corruption.
Real fiscal consolidation is impossible without tackling structural leakages in the system.
Enforcing procurement laws, auditing contracts, and prosecuting those who illegally profit from public funds would release far more money than cutting fuel, freezing workshops, or deferring capital projects ever could.
The problem is not overspending by ministries but criminal enrichment by a powerful few who manipulate the system to line their pockets while ordinary citizens face daily hardships.
Zimbabweans deserve a government that targets corruption at the top, seizes stolen public funds, and restores trust in institutions.
Until this happens, every austerity measure will be perceived as a punishment for the innocent while the guilty go unscathed.
Citizens must demand action.
Tenderpreneurs must be held accountable, public contracts must be transparent, and those who profit illegally from the treasury must face justice.
Anything less is a betrayal, perpetuating inequality and social suffering.
Austerity without accountability is theft.
Cutting fuel, freezing workshops, and deferring projects is not enough.
Justice, transparency, and the return of stolen funds are the only paths to real fiscal discipline.
Zimbabweans have endured too much to watch the nation's wealth siphoned off under the guise of fiscal responsibility. Bold action is urgently required.
The government must stop punishing the people and start confronting the corrupt elite.
Only then can fiscal discipline genuinely serve the nation rather than the privileged few.
© 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/
The Zimbabwean government's Treasury Circular Number 10 of 2025, imposing sweeping austerity measures, is being presented as a necessary step to restore budget credibility and enforce fiscal discipline.
To directly receive articles from Tendai Ruben Mbofana, please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08
Ministries are now required to operate strictly within their 2025 budget allocations.
Unbudgeted spending is declared void, contracts require Treasury approval, foreign travel is curtailed, workshops are restricted, fuel allocations slashed by 25 percent, and hiring frozen except in narrowly defined "critical" sectors.
On paper, these measures suggest prudence.
In reality, they punish ordinary Zimbabweans while leaving the nation's true financial plunderers untouched.
Fuel allocations offer a glaring example of this misdirected austerity.
Police and ambulance services are already struggling to respond to emergencies because of chronic shortages.
A further 25 percent cut will not restore fiscal discipline; it will cost lives.
Citizens in rural areas, who already wait hours or even days for ambulances, may be left to suffer entirely.
Hospitals may defer critical procedures, clinics may remain without transport for outreach programs, and police response to crime will likely worsen.
In effect, austerity is being enforced on those least able to bear it, turning fiscal discipline into a matter of life and death for the public.
Meanwhile, the real drain on the treasury—the tenderpreneurs and politically connected elites—remains largely untouched.
Zimbabwe loses over US$4 billion annually to these actors.
They exploit opaque procurement systems, inflate contract values, and in some cases, never deliver the projects for which they have been paid.
Roads remain unbuilt, schools remain half-finished, and medical equipment remains undelivered—all while payments have already been made and billions have been siphoned into private accounts.
Some of these individuals have acquired state assets and properties through questionable payments from the treasury, yet they operate with impunity because the very officials who should enforce the law benefit from their activities.
The disconnect between policy and reality could not be starker.
While ordinary citizens face hiring freezes, travel bans, and deferred capital projects, the corrupt few continue to amass wealth without fear of reprisal.
Fuel cuts, conference restrictions, and travel freezes are cosmetic measures—they target visible expenses rather than addressing structural rot.
They are symbolic sacrifices that punish the innocent while leaving the guilty untouched.
Zimbabweans are being asked to tighten their belts while the tenderpreneurs walk freely, protected by the same government claiming to enforce fiscal discipline.
This inequity is morally indefensible.
Tenderpreneurs operate with impunity, enriching themselves through contracts awarded without proper tendering procedures.
Some deals are ghost projects: money disappears, work is never done, and payments are made regardless.
High-ranking officials are often complicit, turning a blind eye or directly benefiting, reinforcing a culture of impunity that permeates every level of government.
Meanwhile, citizens who rely on health, education, and security services are punished for the very corruption that cripples those services in the first place.
The freeze on recruitment affects health, education, and security, which are already underfunded.
Hospitals continue to operate with limited staff and outdated equipment.
Schools struggle with teacher shortages and crumbling infrastructure.
Police forces, tasked with maintaining law and order, are left with constrained resources, unable to respond effectively to crime.
Cutting funding to essential services under the pretext of fiscal consolidation threatens to deepen social suffering rather than alleviate it.
The government's insistence on restricting contracts without targeting corruption is a glaring contradiction.
Treasury Circular 10 mandates that any contract above US$2 million requires prior written approval and that smaller contracts remain within budget.
Yet history demonstrates that those with political influence routinely bypass these controls, award themselves lucrative deals, and enjoy protection from prosecution.
Until Zimbabwe confronts these tenderpreneurs and enforces accountability, austerity directed at ordinary citizens is a hollow exercise that will worsen inequality and deepen mistrust in public institutions.
The human cost of this approach cannot be overstated.
Citizens who already endure inflation, power cuts, and a struggling healthcare system are being asked to bear the brunt of austerity, while the corrupt few thrive.
Ambulance services that fail to respond to emergencies, hospitals that defer life-saving procedures, and police who cannot patrol effectively are not theoretical concerns—they are daily realities for Zimbabweans.
Yet the government presents this suffering as a necessary sacrifice, ignoring the billions lost annually to elite corruption.
Real fiscal consolidation is impossible without tackling structural leakages in the system.
Enforcing procurement laws, auditing contracts, and prosecuting those who illegally profit from public funds would release far more money than cutting fuel, freezing workshops, or deferring capital projects ever could.
The problem is not overspending by ministries but criminal enrichment by a powerful few who manipulate the system to line their pockets while ordinary citizens face daily hardships.
Zimbabweans deserve a government that targets corruption at the top, seizes stolen public funds, and restores trust in institutions.
Until this happens, every austerity measure will be perceived as a punishment for the innocent while the guilty go unscathed.
Citizens must demand action.
Tenderpreneurs must be held accountable, public contracts must be transparent, and those who profit illegally from the treasury must face justice.
Anything less is a betrayal, perpetuating inequality and social suffering.
Austerity without accountability is theft.
Cutting fuel, freezing workshops, and deferring projects is not enough.
Justice, transparency, and the return of stolen funds are the only paths to real fiscal discipline.
Zimbabweans have endured too much to watch the nation's wealth siphoned off under the guise of fiscal responsibility. Bold action is urgently required.
The government must stop punishing the people and start confronting the corrupt elite.
Only then can fiscal discipline genuinely serve the nation rather than the privileged few.
© 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/
Source - Tendai Ruben Mbofana
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