Vice President Constantino Chiwenga has criticised Zimbabweans who pose as businesspeople without traceable capital or legitimate businesses.
Speaking at the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) congress in Victoria Falls on Thursday, 26 June, Chiwenga condemned what he described as a growing culture of “briefcase entrepreneurs,” where wealth emerges from unknown sources.
He said this trend of phantom entrepreneurship is not only damaging to the economy but also morally bankrupt. Said Chiwenga:
We must shun unscrupulous “so-called businesspeople” operating from briefcases with no traceable capital or legitimate enterprise.
This culture of phantom entrepreneurship, where money appears without any known source, is not only economically corrosive but ethically bankrupt.
We all know that money does not fall from the heavens like manna. Real businesses are built through hard work, discipline, sacrifice, and value creation.
The day of reckoning is inevitable for those who undermine our economic integrity by engaging in shadowy dealings. Let us not mortgage our nation’s future to fleeting gain.
Equally imperative to this shared national and developmental Vision is our collective stance on integrity and accountability.
As we deepen public-private partnerships and catalyse economic growth, we must decisively shun corruption in all its forms.
There can be no room for rent-seeking behaviours or muddy practices in a modern, competitive economy.
It was Chiwenga who popularised the term “Zvigananda” (singular: Chigananda)—a word now widely used to describe people who flaunt wealth believed to have been acquired through corrupt or opaque means, often with links to political power.
Chiwenga first used the term critically, targeting those enriching themselves dishonestly, in stark contrast to the values of Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle.
Over time, Zvigananda has become a loaded label—used both as an insult and, in some circles, as a symbol of rebellious pride.
In everyday conversation, it often refers to flashy, unaccountable elites—people who showcase lavish lifestyles on social media, yet do not have credible sources of legitimate wealth.
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