Tendai Ruben Mbofana
The ongoing training workshops by the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe (VMCZ) are certainly commendable.
They tackle the vital issue of corruption and illicit financial flows under the theme “Power of the Pen: Investigating Corruption and Illicit Flows for Accountability.”
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Yet, one cannot help but ask the most uncomfortable—yet essential—question: can our media truly be trusted to rise to this task?
Can journalists in Zimbabwe fearlessly investigate and expose corruption, particularly when the perpetrators are high-ranking government officials or powerful figures within the ruling elite?
No one can argue with the importance of such training, especially given the dire state of corruption in the country.
Zimbabwe reportedly loses a staggering US$3 billion annually through illicit financial flows.
This haemorrhaging is largely facilitated by shady public tender processes, the opaque disposal of state assets, and rampant mineral smuggling.
It is no surprise, then, that Zimbabwe earned a dismal score of just 21 out of 100 on Transparency International’s 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index—ranking it the most corrupt nation in southern Africa.
In theory, the media is constitutionally expected to act as a watchdog—exposing wrongdoing, holding those in authority to account, and amplifying the voices of the voiceless.
Investigative journalism is the most powerful tool in unmasking corruption and impunity.
But how effectively can this be carried out in a country where fear and repression stalk the very profession tasked with this noble duty?
As someone with over three decades of experience in media—whether as a journalist, corporate communications specialist, or a social justice advocate—I have had the privilege and pain of engaging with many fellow journalists over the years.
One of the most disturbing trends I have encountered is a widely shared belief that “there is no story worth dying for.”
On the surface, this mantra appears to prioritise journalists’ safety—and indeed, in a hostile environment like Zimbabwe’s, where press freedom is constantly under siege, such concerns are not unfounded.
Yet beneath that caution lies a dangerous truth: many in the media have resigned themselves to self-censorship and have become too afraid to challenge the powerful.
This fear is not theoretical.
The history of journalism in Zimbabwe is littered with grim examples of persecution.
In the late 1990s, journalists Mark Chavunduka and Ray Choto of The Standard were abducted, tortured, and detained for reporting on a failed coup plot within the Zimbabwe National Army—an incident that marked a chilling chapter in Zimbabwe’s media history.
In 2001, the Daily News, then the country’s most widely read independent newspaper, was bombed twice and eventually banned after exposing government corruption and mismanagement.
Its crime? Daring to speak truth to power.
Fast forward to today, and the assault on the press continues—only this time, under the guise of law.
The Cyber and Data Protection Act and sections of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act have been weaponised to silence dissenting voices.
In 2022, veteran journalist Hope Chizuzu was arrested under accusations of “transmitting false data messages intending to cause harm.”
Earlier this year, another respected journalist, Blessed Mhlanga, was charged for allegedly “transmitting data messages inciting violence.”
These charges, vague and dangerously subjective, send a clear message: dissent will not be tolerated.
Then came the shocking death of investigative journalist Watson Flexy Munyaka in March 2025.
He was reportedly thrown from a moving vehicle in Marondera by unidentified assailants.
Just days before, his collective of investigative journalists—Dug Up—had released a damning exposé on internal rifts within the ruling ZANU-PF party, including video footage implicating the president and his deputy.
Munyaka’s death is yet another chilling reminder of the risks faced by those who dare to hold the powerful to account.
Even state-owned media is not spared this pressure.
While a few individuals may voluntarily parrot government propaganda, the majority do so out of fear and economic desperation.
In a country with over 90% unemployment and a collapsing media industry, job security often trumps professional integrity.
Losing a state media job may mean lifelong poverty.
So many continue to toe the line, not because they believe in the narrative, but because the alternative is unbearable.
Zimbabwe’s post-independence government has been at war with the media for decades.
Despite constitutional guarantees for press freedom, successive administrations have viewed journalists not as partners in democracy, but as threats to power.
And so, the fear is real.
But if journalists become so crippled by fear that they refuse to investigate high-level corruption, then who will?
If no one is willing to tell the story that needs telling, then who will speak for the silenced and oppressed?
Who will expose the looting that is robbing Zimbabweans of hospitals, electricity, clean water, and schools?
Surely, journalism must be about more than publishing puff pieces or focusing on minor infractions like $5 bribes at police roadblocks or teachers charging $10 for extra lessons.
As important as these are, they are not the root of our national crisis.
The real damage lies in the billions siphoned off by those in positions of power and shielded by a culture of impunity.
Thankfully, not all hope is lost.
We have witnessed promising examples of fearless journalism.
The NewsHawks has courageously broken stories on high-profile corruption—most notably the massive election procurement scandal involving the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), tenderpreneur Wicknell Chivayo, and South African firm Ren-Form CC.
Reports revealed that Zimbabwe’s Treasury paid R1.1 billion to Ren-Form, which suspiciously transferred R800 million (about US$42 million) to Chivayo’s accounts.
Masvingo Mirror has also played a commendable role in exposing high-level corruption and electoral manipulation.
In 2024, the publication broke a groundbreaking story revealing how Zimbabwean nationals—allegedly linked to the ruling ZANU-PF party—had participated in Mozambique’s elections, reportedly casting votes in constituencies where they had no legal standing.
This revelation raised serious questions about cross-border political interference, the integrity of regional electoral processes, and the extent to which ruling elites are willing to go to retain power and influence.
It was investigative journalism at its finest—bold, risky, and firmly in service of accountability.
However, these courageous efforts have not gone unpunished.
Both Masvingo Mirror and The NewsHawks have faced intimidation and persecution at the hands of the state.
In 2023, Masvingo Mirror’s editor, Garikai Mafirakureva, was arrested on charges of publishing falsehoods—charges that were later dropped.
In 2024, The NewsHawks reported being threatened by elements within the military, who allegedly tried to force the publication to drop a story claiming that three army generals had been dismissed over corruption allegations.
Yet, in spite of these threats—any of which could have easily pushed them into invoking the familiar excuse that “no story is worth dying for”—these publications have refused to back down.
They have continued to investigate and expose high-level corruption with courage and integrity, providing a rare beacon of journalistic bravery in an increasingly hostile media environment.
This is the kind of hard-hitting journalism the country so desperately needs.
Yet, such coverage has largely been absent from other media outlets, most of which appear unwilling or unable to handle such explosive revelations.
So, we return to the question at hand.
While the VMCZ’s training programs on investigating corruption are vital and necessary, will they translate into actual change on the ground?
Or will they remain little more than talk shops—opportunities for allowances and handouts, while the core mission is left undone?
The power of the pen must go beyond workshops and hashtags.
It must pierce through the veil of fear, propaganda, and repression.
Zimbabwe’s journalists must reclaim their role not just as chroniclers of events, but as fearless defenders of public accountability.
They must decide, once and for all, whether their pens will serve the truth or remain shackled by fear.
Time will tell.
But with every passing day of silence in the face of grand looting, Zimbabwe bleeds.
And the question lingers: who will dare to stop it?
- Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofana.tendairuben.news.blog/