By A Correspondent-President Emmerson Mnangagwa has seemingly abandoned the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD), a platform he controversially created following the disputed 2018 presidential elections as a way of sidelining the country’s main opposition, then led by Nelson Chamisa.

POLAD, which was presented as a multi-party dialogue mechanism, brought together losing presidential candidates under the guise of inclusive governance and policy consultation.

However, critics argue that it was a political ploy designed to create a façade of democratic engagement while neutralising real opposition and undermining legitimate calls for electoral reforms.

The grouping excluded key opposition figures such as Chamisa, who rejected the 2018 election results and refused to recognise Mnangagwa’s presidency.

POLAD participants were instead drawn largely from fringe parties that had performed poorly at the polls, raising questions about their representative mandate and political relevance.

In return, these minor political actors received perks such as vehicles, fuel allowances, diplomatic passports, and invitations to official functions.

Despite initial media hype and state-sponsored praise, POLAD failed to gain traction or credibility among the general public. It was largely seen as a rubber-stamp platform for government policies, lacking the power to influence real reform.

Now, following the similarly contested 2023 elections, POLAD has gone silent—and so has Mnangagwa.

NewsDay has learned that the grouping has not convened for several months, leaving its members disillusioned and scrambling to remain politically relevant. A rare meeting was recently held in Harare, where members expressed concern over Mnangagwa’s prolonged silence and apparent abandonment of the platform.

“It has been quite a long time since we formally met and we are very concerned with the silence and absence of POLAD in the political arena,” said Divine Hove, leader of the Nationalist Alliance Party.

“There is so much that is happening in our country. We need to ignite the spirit of dialogue and engagement with the Emmerson Mnangagwa government, which started POLAD in 2018, so that we can share ideas.”

Hove insisted that POLAD had made some contributions to policy formulation, including through the formation of committees such as the economic committee, which was supposed to serve in an advisory capacity to government.

Also present at the meeting was Welcome Shumba, the POLAD chief of protocol and leader of the little-known 1980 Freedom Movement. Shumba welcomed the meeting and called for renewed focus on “nation building.”

Another POLAD principal, who declined to be named, said the platform contributed to national stability after the 2018 elections and should be revived.

“POLAD managed to create some stability in the country when it was started in 2018, this is why we have met today [Monday],” the principal said.

However, political analysts have long dismissed such claims, describing POLAD as a co-optation strategy masquerading as dialogue. They argue that the absence of robust opposition voices within the platform rendered it ineffective and politically compromised from inception.

Presidential spokesperson George Charamba, responding to reports of the meeting and the members’ concerns, said he would relay their message to Mnangagwa.

“Tell them that as the Press secretary of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, I have heard their concern and I will relay their message,” Charamba said.

While POLAD members seek to resuscitate the moribund platform, observers say its marginalisation may signal that Mnangagwa no longer finds the grouping useful after securing a second term amid yet another disputed electoral process.

Critics view this as confirmation that POLAD was never a genuine vehicle for democratic dialogue but a strategic smokescreen designed to weaken opposition voices and buy political legitimacy both locally and internationally.