By Dr Phillan Zamchiya
Dear Reader, some people seem shocked by the scale of the Tagwirei wedding and the concentration of political, and crony business elites around it. But to some of us, this is not new. I remember writing in 2021, on page 142 of The Shadow State in Africa: ‘’In addition to getting tenders to supply the inputs for the military-run command agriculture programme, Sakunda Holdings [Read Tagwirei] in partnership with Trafigura, a company based in Singapore, controlled the single existing fuel pipeline in Zimbabwe from Beira to Harare. All fuel importers in Zimbabwe have to bring fuel through the pipeline and pay a levy to Sakunda Holdings, in part because Tagwirei said he invested money to repair the pipeline. Similar to command agriculture, key figures in the shadow state backed Tagwirei in the fuel deal, including a former commander of the air force and a former head of the presidential guard. Tagwirei was so networked within the military that ‘AT HIS FATHER’S FUNERAL [IN MAY 2018], THE WHO’S WHO IN THE ARMY ATTENDED, LEAVING THE BARRACKS WITH NO SINGLE SENIOR COMMANDER.’ Beyond controlling the fuel pipeline, Sakunda Holdings is alleged to have been given preferential treatment – including being able to offload government bonds at ‘hugely preferential rates’ – from the RBZ.’’ (Zamchiya, 2021, pg 142). Reader, some of us have long tracked Tagwirei’s presidential ambitions within Zimbabwean political circles. But Zimbabwean succession politics are far more complex and dangerous than wealth alone. One must simultaneously navigate popular legitimacy, shifting military alliances and hierarchies, liberation legitimacy, party factions, and international acceptability. That is why understanding Zimbabwe requires studying the state behind the state, not just individual personalities.
