Politics and Society Archives | This is Africa

A mirror across the Zambezi: Why Zambia’s August 13 vote matters to Zimbabwe and SADC

Dr Blessing Vava — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 09:36:17 +0000

Zambia’s August 2026 presidential election stands as a vital geopolitical watershed for Southern Africa. Strikingly contrasted against Zimbabwe’s executive overreach and eroded voting rights, Lusaka’s ballot presents a critical test: whether SADC’s future will be defined by constitutional accountability and fiscal reform or liberation-era nostalgia.

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Explaining the theory of political ‘Morari’ in Zimbabwe

Takura Zhangazha — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 09:06:19 +0000

Zimbabwe’s liberation-era morari is a potent ideological weapon. This analysis explores how ZANU PF has ruthlessly weaponized this ingrained political culture to justify systemic violence and dominance, while a fragmented opposition remains crippled by a superficial, election-centric misunderstanding of its true organic power.

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Zimbabwe’s political dilemma: Shallow populism, materialism and dying ideological values

Takura Zhangazha — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 14:39:17 +0000

Zimbabwe has reached a perilous political impasse. By altering the constitution to entrench ZANU PF’s elitist rule until 2030, the establishment is systematically dismantling the nation's democratic soul. With a defeated opposition and youth paralyzed by materialism, this calculated power grab trades a progressive future for patronage and profit.

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Can a people’s Constitution beat a colonial immunity deal? Omtatah takes on the Bretton Woods Agreements Act

Mzalendo Mutemi wa Kiama — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 13:40:56 +0000

A 1963 statute signed in Kenya's first months of independence is now being tested against the 2010 Constitution's rights framework. The outcome will shape whether African courts can ever hold global lenders accountable.

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Evidence, inference and democratic legitimacy: Reading the Global Witness report on Zambia

Op-ed — Thu, 23 Jul 2026 13:02:52 +0000

Weeks before Zambia’s election, a Global Witness report alleges mining-sector influence over government policy—but explicitly concedes it found no evidence of corruption or illegality. This critique argues the report’s conclusions outstrip its evidence, raising broader questions about methodology, electoral timing, and the evidentiary standards required for claims of institutional capture.

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