Jonathan Moyo fights in AG Mabiza’s corner

Exiled former cabinet minister Jonathan Moyo has come to Attorney General Virginia Mabiza’s defence who came under fire on social media.

 

She was lambasted over her trip to the Vatican City along with President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa.

 

Traditionally when world leaders visit Rome to meet the Pope, they travel with their wives, but President Mnangagwa went with Mabiza, stirring social media attacks against her.

 

However, Moyo believes the attack is unwarranted and has come to her defence.

 

Moyo writes:

 

The political chicanery unleashed on social media against Zimbabwe’s Attorney General, Virginia Mabiza, by self-styled influencers peddling baseless innuendos and insinuations—without offering even a shred of evidence—marks a disgraceful new low.

 

Such tactics serve neither their perpetrators nor the politicians they purport to champion.

 

While it is essential and commendable to hold elected or appointed officials accountable for their actions or inactions in public service, it is utterly outrageous and despicable to gratuitously smear them for partisan or factional gain—especially under the guise of supporting a political figure. No cause, no leader, can benefit from this kind of skulduggery.

 

The barrage of abuse erupted after Deputy Chief Secretary George Charamba shared images on August 31, 2025, of senior government officials accompanying President Emmerson Mnangagwa to the Vatican.

 

These photos, captured from an iconic papal window at St. Peter’s Basilica, were posted in quick succession: Charamba’s own at 13:45 CAT, followed by Chief Secretary Dr Martin Rushwaya with Chief of Protocol Ambassador Gideon Gapare at 13:48, the window itself at 13:55, and finally Attorney General Mabiza at 13:57.

 

Curiously—or tellingly—only Mabiza’s image, the last in the series, quickly ignited a storm of vitriol.

 

The attackers, mostly former supporters of Nelson Chamisa now masquerading as backers of a supposed Zanu PF faction (with more zeal than the faction itself), are not even Zanu PF members.

 

The core narrative fuelling this abuse? That Mabiza had no legitimate role in the presidential delegation en route to China via the Vatican—except for some sordid insinuations concocted by these crude character assassins.

 

In a brazen display of misogyny, no one questioned Dr Rushwaya’s inclusion, despite the rarity of a Chief Secretary—the apex of the public service—joining such delegations.

 

This hypocrisy is all the more glaring, as these same critics are often the first to correctly rally in defence of women in opposition ranks, such as Fadzayi Mahere, when they endure similar misogynistic innuendos and slurs—exposing a blatant and unacceptable double standard.

 

This oversight conveniently ignores a key fact: Rushwaya’s presence likely explains Mabiza’s.

 

As the only two senior officials who routinely attend Cabinet meetings, the Chief Secretary safeguards deliberations and decisions, while the Attorney General serves as the government’s chief legal adviser on all matters, from regional and international protocols to drafting legislation for Cabinet and Parliament.

 

Every ministry and department is her “client,” with the President as the foremost, followed by the Minister of Justice, Legal, and Parliamentary Affairs.

 

This established role is longstanding and unchanging, as far back as one cares to go.

 

Critically, the Attorney General provides indispensable legal counsel on agreements between the Zimbabwean government and third parties, especially foreign entities.

 

Take the pivotal Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with China Railway Group—initially valued at USD 533 million and now at USD 600 million—which could not have been negotiated or signed without the Chief Secretary’s oversight and the Attorney General’s explicit legal guidance.

 

It requires no genius to recognise that finalising this MoA, slated for implementation in December, topped the agenda during President Mnangagwa’s China visit. The key players? Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube, Chief Secretary Dr Rushwaya, and Attorney General Mabiza.

 

It is profoundly embarrassing—and a national disservice—that such vital discussions are overshadowed by clueless agitators who treat weighty state affairs like tabloid fodder on the Mai Chisamba Show.

 

The public deserves far better.

 

Let there be no doubt: Virginia Mabiza is Zimbabwe’s duly appointed Attorney General, selected by the same President who elevated the factional figures these imposters pretend to defend or love.

 

This farce cannot possibly advance Zanu PF’s interests. No rational faction within Zanu PF should tolerate it, much less allow it to be propagated in their name.

 

Factions in Zanu PF are of course an undeniable reality, but any such group could easily disavow these non-member charlatans. Permitting the deception only sullies the faction’s reputation—and undermines both Zanu PF as a governing party, and the national interest.