Zanu PF businessman Kuda Tagwirei confirmed on Sunday a meeting was held at Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Precabe farm.
Zanu PF sources say Mnangagwa is keen to cut his deputy Constantino Chiwenga’s tail
The previous day, Tagwirei publicly ridiculed Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s warning against “Zvigananda” – a label Chiwenga once used to criticize unruly political cliques – by proudly referring to his associates with that very term during a speech in Masvingo.
Speaking at a Women for ED event on Saturday, Tagwirei took his provocation further by scoffing at the idea of a military without financial control. He declared that “wealth is the army”, effectively suggesting that power now lies in the hands of those who control money – namely, himself.
In a speech laced with religious undertones and political muscle-flexing, Tagwirei said:
“This word, wealth, can be interchanged with the word army. So we can juxtapose it to say it is God who gives power to get wealth. So when you have wealth, you have an army… an army that is able to fight for us.”
The remarks, interpreted by many as a direct dig at Chiwenga’s military credentials, follow weeks of internal tension in ZANU PF, marked by a growing perception that the general has lost his grip on both the party and the army.
Mpofu Questions Tagwirei’s Motive
Constitutional lawyer Thabani Mpofu weighed in on the development, writing on X:
“Was it an in-your-face insult to Chiwenga who ‘coined’ the term whilst possibly criticizing the group? Was it Tagwirei forcing the words down the feared General’s throat…?”
Mpofu suggested the move may signify a deeper power shift within ZANU PF, or an episode of “unchecked arrogance with consequences.”
Chiwenga Silent, But Pressure Mounts
The Vice President, who coined the term “Zvigananda” in a 2022 speech warning against internal ZANU PF factions that he described as rogue and lawless, has yet to respond. His silence, however, is growing louder in a climate where the military has now accepted a constitutional petition to retire President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Sources close to the security sector say the military’s reception of the petition – which implicitly challenges Mnangagwa and his allies, including Tagwirei – may have been unthinkable without either Chiwenga’s approval or his complete sidelining.
The Wealth-War Doctrine
Tagwirei’s latest speech appears to formalize a new political doctrine: that those who hold the purse also command the guns. By equating wealth to an army, he not only places himself as a kingmaker but subtly diminishes the traditional role of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces as the ultimate power broker in state affairs.
His boldness, analysts say, is also rooted in the reality that most major government contracts – including fuel, infrastructure, and mining – now run through entities he controls or influences.
Whether this is the rise of a new emperor behind the throne or simply elite bravado remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: Tagwirei’s “Zvigananda” moment has redrawn Zimbabwe’s power map, and the silence from the barracks is as ominous as it is telling.- ZimEye