A NATION FAILED A DOCTOR WHO SAVED LIVES: THE DEATH OF DR. NEMBAWARE AND ZIMBABWE’S COLLAPSING HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

In a tragedy that has shaken the conscience of Zimbabwe, the untimely death of Dr. Mthabisi Nembaware has starkly exposed the tragic collapse of the country’s public healthcare system. Dr. Nembaware, a young and dedicated physician, died following a car accident—not because his injuries were untreatable, but because the healthcare facilities in Mutare, where he was taken after the crash, lacked even the most basic life-saving resources like an Intensive Care Unit (ICU). His death, preventable under any functional healthcare system, is a brutal indictment of a government that has long neglected its duty to protect the lives of its citizens.

Dr. Nembaware’s passing is more than a personal loss to his family and colleagues—it is symbolic of the thousands of lives lost each year in Zimbabwe due to a health system in freefall. Mutare Provincial Hospital, which serves the entire Manicaland Province, had no ICU to stabilize or manage severe trauma. There were no working city-to-city ambulance services to transfer him to a better facility. And even when his family rallied to charter a private air ambulance for $5,000, the rescue mission was aborted because the landing lights at the airport in Mutare were not functioning. This is not just tragic—it is grotesque.

The circumstances of his death, as detailed by veteran journalist Barnabus Thondhlana, have ignited outrage across Zimbabwe. For years, the country’s hospitals have struggled without basic medicines, painkillers, or equipment. Nurses and doctors operate under impossible conditions, often without pay or proper tools. Health professionals are leaving the country in droves, escaping to nations that offer them a chance to practise their craft in dignity, for a decent wage, and within systems that function. The brain drain is real, and Dr. Nembaware was one of the few who stayed behind to serve the people—only to be failed by the very system he chose to serve.

His death is not just the result of a car accident—it is the direct result of decades of economic mismanagement, corruption, and the brutal prioritization of elite luxuries over essential public services. Millions are wasted annually on brand-new luxury SUVs for government officials, extravagant foreign travel, and vanity projects. Meanwhile, public hospitals like Mutare General are falling apart. There is no excuse, no justification, and no redemption for a government that allows a trauma patient to die simply because there is no working ICU or functioning airlift infrastructure in a major city.

What makes Dr. Nembaware’s death even more painful is that he represented the best of Zimbabwe: a brilliant, selfless, and committed professional working in under-resourced rural areas like Hauna. He chose to give back, to serve the people instead of chasing personal gain abroad. His death is not just a loss to his family or the medical fraternity—it is a loss to the nation.

This devastating event must serve as a turning point. Zimbabwe can no longer afford to ignore the rot in its health system. We need massive, urgent, and sustained investment in healthcare infrastructure. The government must redirect resources away from luxuries for the elite and instead prioritise hospitals, clinics, ambulance systems, and emergency air evacuation capabilities. These are not luxuries—they are necessities.

Citizens must demand accountability. We must demand answers about why Mutare Provincial Hospital still has no ICU. Why are airstrips in major towns not maintained? Why is there no national air ambulance system? Why does a country that can fund pre-election bribes, massive motorcades, and vanity projects not have money to maintain hospitals?

Dr. Mthabisi Nembaware died because his country failed him. He should be alive today. Let his story be a call to action—a rallying cry for healthcare reform and a people-first approach to governance. Let his death not be in vain.

May his soul rest in peace. May his name live on, not only as a reminder of what went wrong but as a symbol of the urgent fight for a healthcare system that saves lives instead of abandoning them.