THE SHADOW GENERAL BEHIND ZIMBABWE’S DIRTY POWER GAMES

Zimbabwe has become a country run by shadows, fear, and secret power games. One name that keeps coming up in these dirty battles is Tapfumaneyi. His story shows how ZANU PF survives by moving people like chess pieces while ordinary people suffer. This is not about national security. It is about staying in power at any cost.

After leaving the CIO in 2009, Tapfumaneyi worked in Mugabe’s office and later became Permanent Secretary for War Veterans. When Mnangagwa took power through a coup in 2017 with help from Chiwenga, Tapfumaneyi was brought back into the CIO in January 2020 as co Deputy Director General. His equal was Gatsha Mazithulela and the boss was Isaac Moyo. From the start, his relationship with Chiwenga was bad. Tapfumaneyi believed Chiwenga was blocking his rise. He was also seen as close to the G40 group, which made his return controversial and dangerous.

Slowly, he became part of Mnangagwa’s inner intelligence machine. His power grew during the 2023 elections when Mnangagwa pushed the army and Chiwenga aside. Mnangagwa feared the army could remove him as part of the ZANU PF succession fight. Instead, he used Tapfumaneyi to run a secret operation called Forever Associates Zimbabwe. This group is blamed for voter control, intimidation, cheating, and manipulation. Many people now see Tapfumaneyi as the main brain behind that dirty election victory.

After that, his relationship with Chiwenga fully collapsed. The fight between Mnangagwa and Chiwenga became more dangerous, involving explosions, poison stories, and internal purges. As war veterans linked to Blessed Geza began to support Chiwenga, Tapfumaneyi became Mnangagwa’s trusted shield. Throughout 2025, Chiwenga tried to remove Mnangagwa but failed. Under pressure, Mnangagwa promoted Tapfumaneyi to Major General in June to protect himself. Tapfumaneyi moved back into the army with serious political power.

In November 2025, within a short time, he was promoted again to Lieutenant General and made commander of the Zimbabwe National Army, replacing Matatu who had moved up. Many senior officers were shocked. They said he was smart and strategic but lacked real command experience and combat exposure. The move was clearly political, not professional. It was part of Mnangagwa’s plan to block Chiwenga and secure his illegal plan to extend power beyond 2030.

Still, Tapfumaneyi strengthened himself through staff courses and training. His appointment came during a big military reshuffle. Mnangagwa has a habit of running to former Zipra commanders when he feels threatened. In 2019, when leaders wanted to declare a state of emergency while he was abroad, Sibanda saved him from another coup. Last year, Sibanda again helped stop a possible takeover before the March 31 protests. Chiwenga was believed to be working with retired general Sanyatwe.

Sanyatwe was removed just days before those protests. It was his second removal. He had been pushed out as Presidential Guard boss and sent to Tanzania, then brought back in 2023, only to be fired again to block a coup. Tapfumaneyi, guided by Matatu, now acts as Mnangagwa’s final shield.

This shows that Zimbabwe is being ruled like a private army camp. Promotions are not about merit or service. They are about loyalty and fear. While leaders fight over power, citizens face poverty, hunger, broken hospitals, and stolen elections. ZANU PF has turned the state into a battlefield of egos and secrets. Until this system is dismantled, Zimbabwe will remain trapped under men who rule through shadows instead of justice.

The people deserve truth, safety, and real democracy, not soldiers playing politics. Every promotion based on fear pushes the nation deeper into crisis. Silence helps the oppressors. Speaking out remains our strongest weapon against tyranny and lies.