Vice President Constantino Chiwenga has declared that Vision 2030 must lift ordinary Zimbabweans into prosperity and pride, not leave them as “hewers of wood and drawers of water, surviving from the benevolence of a privileged few”.
Chiwenga, who is also ZANU PF’s Second Secretary, was speaking at the party’s 23rd National People’s Conference in Chinhoyi, Mashonaland West, on 16 October 2026.
He did not name names, but his words are likely to be read as a rebuke of the flamboyant patronage displayed by some in the ruling party. The late businessman Wicknell Chivayo, in particular, became synonymous with lavishing cars and cash on a hand-picked circle of musicians, pastors and other public figures, while most Zimbabweans could only look on from afar.
Critics argue that this so-called mbinga culture, the conspicuous flaunting of wealth championed by some within ZANU PF, undermines the value of hard work and patience and glamorises fortunes whose origins cannot be traced.
In his opening remarks at the conference, Chiwenga warned that young people were watching closely.
“As we deliberate at this momentous Conference, we must remember that we are merely temporary custodians of this vanguard Party, for our time on earth is finite, so what legacy are we leaving? We are here to serve the people, never to be served by them,” he said.
“The younger generation is watching our conduct with sharp attention. Our words must find full expression in our actions, placing service above personal ambition and striving to leave ZANU-PF stronger than we found it.
“Our collective resolve to attain Vision 2030 must be to consolidate economic development, uplift the living standards of the people, and make them proud citizens of this country, not hewers of wood and drawers of water, surviving from the benevolence of a privileged few.”
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