ZIMBABWE’S SHADOW REGIME: A CRIMINAL CABAL MASQUERADING AS GOVERNMENT

Zimbabwe is no longer being governed by a legitimate authority elected by the people — that much is clear. What currently exists is a clandestine, predatory regime operating in the shadows, fronted by the failing, brutal, and oppressive ZANU PF party. This group has turned the state into a tool for its own enrichment, using a false image of governance to cover up its corruption, lawlessness, and outright criminality.

The so-called leadership in Zimbabwe is not concerned with national development or public service. It is a cartel obsessed with power and profit. At the heart of its rule is the ruthless extraction and looting of the country’s fiscal reserves and natural resources. This cabal continues to plunder Zimbabwe’s gold, lithium, diamonds, and other vital assets — not for national prosperity, but for private, illicit gain. This is the true face of the ZANU PF regime: parasitic, self-serving, and indifferent to the suffering of ordinary Zimbabweans.

They remain in power not because the people want them, but because they manipulate institutions, intimidate citizens, and violate the Constitution with impunity. Their stranglehold on the state is sustained through a series of constitutional mutilations designed to shield them from accountability and keep the looting machinery operational. The judiciary, law enforcement, and even parliament have been captured and are now being used to insulate the regime from consequences.

This illegal and unelected power structure thrives on dismantling constitutional democracy. By undermining the rule of law, ignoring equality before the law, destroying the independence of the judiciary, and centralizing power in the executive, they’ve built a fortress that protects criminals, not citizens. Devolution, transparency, and decentralization — all tools of good governance — are treated as threats rather than principles of democratic rule.

What is most disturbing is how deeply entrenched this criminal operation has become. Public institutions are no longer run by professionals. Instead, they are staffed by loyalists, relatives, and tribal affiliates whose only qualification is their willingness to protect the regime. Competence has been replaced by blind allegiance. Integrity has been abandoned in favor of silence and complicity.

This shadow government does not only reject accountability — it weaponizes state power against those who demand it. Journalists are jailed. Activists are abducted. Opposition leaders are prosecuted on bogus charges. Any dissent is crushed, not with reason or dialogue, but with force and intimidation.

All the while, Zimbabwe continues to slide toward total collapse. Infrastructure is crumbling. Hospitals have no medicine. Schools are in ruins. Millions go hungry while a small clique dines in luxury. The suffering of ordinary citizens is of no concern to those in power — unless it threatens to interrupt their steady flow of looted wealth.

The continued operation of this rogue regime poses not only a danger to Zimbabweans but to the entire region. If left unchecked, Zimbabwe will not merely remain a failed state — it will become a source of instability across Southern Africa. What we are witnessing is not just corruption. It is state capture of the highest order. A criminal syndicate has embedded itself at the heart of the nation, operating with zero legitimacy and no regard for constitutional order.

To save Zimbabwe, the first step must be exposing and dismantling this shadow regime. The world must understand that this is not a dysfunctional government struggling with policy — it is an organized system of looting, repression, and illegality. A total reset is needed. The return of constitutional order, rule of law, democratic governance, and legitimate elections must be non-negotiable.

Zimbabwe’s people deserve more than survival under the boot of thieves. They deserve a government that works for them — not one that bleeds the country dry while pretending to lead. The era of silence must end. The criminals masquerading as leaders must be held accountable. Until then, the dream of a free, just, and democratic Zimbabwe remains just that — a dream.