Stakeholders speak on the role of traditional chiefs in politics

Grace Moyo

Recent utterances by Zanu PF Second Secretary Kembo Mohadi suggesting that traditional leaders have agreed to commandeer their subjects to vote for the ruling party in the upcoming harmonised elections have re-ignited focus on the role of traditional chiefs in the politics of the land.

Mohadi made the remarks during the installation of Chief Maduna in Filabusi recently.

“When I came here I asked who the headmen are, as they are the ones who lead people. They are the ones who will make people go and vote for Zanu PF. You traditional leaders are the ones who will make people go and vote for Zanu PF. I hope all the leaders here, you, Sibasa and Ndube will make your followers go and vote. We want to win resoundingly.”

“May I remind you that what we agreed on should stay as is until the day the president announces the election date. Do we agree Godlwayo?” said Mohadi.

Mohadi’s utterances are at odds with the Constitution of Zimbabwe regarding traditional leaders and partisan politics.

All traditional leaders who include chiefs, head persons or village heads as provided in section 280(2) of the Constitution, must not be involved in partisan politics as this is a violation of the right to a free and fair election as provided in section 67 (a) of the Constitution.

Political analyst Oswald Sibanda said the capture of traditional leaders to impose the ruling party in their jurisdictions continues to be a black dot on Zimbabwe’s democracy.

“Until such systems are dismantled, we cannot talk about free and fair elections and democracy in Zimbabwe. This has been going on for too long and has unfortunately become ‘normal.’ The Constitution is clear but is being violated brazenly. What Mohadi says would be a shocker anywhere else but in Zimbabwe. That is how low we have sunk,” said Sibanda.

Civil society organisations and opposition leaders have long accused Zanu PF of using traditional chiefs to impose the ruling party’s ideologies and influence elections particularly in the rural areas.

The wanton disregard of the Constitution and impunity was evident when the Election Resource Centre (ERC) sued Chief Fortune Charumbira over unconstitutional utterances pledging support to the ruling ZANU PF. The court found the Chief President to be out of order and ordered him to withdraw the statement, an order he did not abide by. Instead, he went on to make more statements to the same effect with no consequences. Before that, Masvingo High Court judge, Garainesu Mawadze had in 2015, made a ruling prohibiting traditional leaders from making political statements and declaring allegiance to any political party.

Traditional chiefs are important to Zanu PF in rural areas as they mobilise votes for the ruling party using state resources. They are rewarded handsomely for their efforts.

Recently the government purchased brand new off-road cars for the traditional chiefs despite the economic crisis and a comatose health sector. In addition, they receive monthly allowances and free agricultural inputs from the government.

Traditional leaders politicise food aid from both the State and NGOs on behalf of Zanu PF, according to a March 2021 report titled ‘The Politics of Food: A Contextual Analysis of the Distribution of Food Aid in Zimbabwe’ by the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, a coalition of over 20 human rights organisations and the Zimbabwe Peace Project, a civil society organisation.

However, Zanu PF youth, Ephraim Mulawo refuted the allegations that traditional leaders are doing the bidding for the ruling party. 

“These are lies perpetrated by our detractors on behalf of their foreign masters. Our chiefs have been discharging their duties in a professional manner. It is normal for chiefs to cooperate with the government of the day especially on issues of development and there is nothing wrong with that. All these stories about politicisation of food aid are fabrications that are meant to be an excuse for the opposition’s failure to gain support in rural areas,” said Mulawo.

A Tsholotsho resident who declined to be named for fear of reprisals said, “There is no way the opposition can win elections in this environment. People will always choose to be safe. If we vote for the opposition we may kiss good bye to agricultural inputs and die of hunger.”

Zimbabwe Democracy Institute (ZDI), in their report titled, Electoral impregnability of the rural constituency in Zimbabwe’ said, “82% of research participants noted that traditional leaders hinder access to the rural constituency by the opposition, media and the civil society ahead of the 2023 election. This entails that traditional leaders generally facilitate the impregnability of the rural constituency.

The report further said due to historical ties traceable to the war of liberation, traditional leadership comprising chiefs, headmen and village heads in order of hierarchy, has been captured by the ruling party to facilitate the closure of their communities from opposition penetration.

According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) 67.7% of Zimbabweans live in rural areas. The world average of people living in rural areas in 2021 based on 196 countries was 39.30 percent. It remains to be seen how influential traditional leaders will be the much anticipated harmonised election.