By A Correspondent-President Emmerson Mnangagwa has deployed Retired Lieutenant General Dr Engelbert Rugeje to China on a high-level agricultural investment mission—barely months after unceremoniously firing him from key ministerial boards, in a move widely interpreted as part of a broader purge targeting Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s military allies.
Rugeje, once a prominent figure in the military-engineered 2017 coup that ousted the late Robert Mugabe and installed Mnangagwa, is leading a Zimbabwean delegation currently engaging the Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences (JAAS) in Nanjing. The Chinese expressed interest in collaborative projects with Zimbabwean universities and agricultural institutions, and a memorandum of mutual cooperation was reportedly reached.
The visit, while seemingly routine, comes under the shadow of deepening internal tensions in ZANU-PF.
Recently Rugeje was among five senior retired military officers summarily removed from the boards of the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) and the Agricultural Marketing Authority.
Sources familiar with the developments said the purged generals were suspected of resisting Mnangagwa’s reported bid to extend his presidency beyond 2028.
The dismissals have fuelled speculation of an intensifying cold war between Mnangagwa and Chiwenga, with the latest moves seen as part of a wider strategy to weaken the vice president’s influence ahead of a potentially explosive ZANU-PF elective congress.
Both Rugeje and Chiwenga were central to the 2017 military operation that propelled Mnangagwa to power, but relations have since deteriorated amid fierce succession battles.
A source told ZimEye that the removals were “meant to test Chiwenga’s capacity to respond or revolt,” and signaled a new phase in the political chess game within the ruling elite. Rugeje declined to comment, referring questions to the Ministry of Agriculture, which had not responded at the time of publication.
Despite his demotion, Rugeje was all diplomacy in China, projecting loyalty to Mnangagwa and reiterating Zimbabwe’s commitment to inclusive, agriculture-led economic growth. He praised the president’s Vision 2030 agenda, which targets a US$13.75 billion agricultural economy by 2025—up from an initial US$8.2 billion goal. He also outlined strategic plans under the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy to triple agricultural output by 2030.
“We see immense potential in sectors such as maize, wheat, cotton, livestock, poultry, and horticulture. These areas are ripe for investment and growth,” Rugeje told Chinese officials.
His delegation extended an invitation to JAAS for joint research, student exchanges, and curriculum development to help modernise Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector through smart technologies and innovation.
But analysts say Rugeje’s reassignment to a largely technical diplomatic mission, stripped of his former policymaking influence, signals a deliberate sidelining—part of Mnangagwa’s broader strategy to dismantle the remaining networks loyal to Chiwenga within the state, military, and party structures.
Since the 2023 elections, which Mnangagwa controversially won amid widespread allegations of rigging, political tensions within ZANU-PF have been rising. Chiwenga’s silence has only heightened intrigue around his political future, as key allies are gradually being removed from influential roles.
What remains to be seen is whether Mnangagwa’s tactical purges will neutralise internal resistance—or provoke the same kind of backlash that once toppled Robert Mugabe.