By William Muchingamiri
The year 2026 has begun with a significant step in Zimbabwe’s deepening participatory governance, as ZANU PF on Friday, 9 January, launched the Politics Mubhazi – In-Bus Political Interaction Tour. The innovative programme features live political discussions inside a moving bus, symbolically taking political engagement directly into communities and everyday spaces.
The tour started along the Harare–Murewa route, marking the beginning of what is expected to be a nationwide initiative.
Hosted by Cde Taurai Kandishaya, ZANU PF’s Deputy National Political Commissar and Politburo member, alongside Cde Munashe Mtutsa, the programme forms part of the party’s broader strategy to strengthen grassroots engagement and promote meaningful dialogue between citizens and leadership.
At its core, Politics Mubhazi provides a platform for citizens to better understand ZANU PF’s structures, policies, and ideological direction, while also offering space for participants to raise questions on issues affecting their communities and national development. The initiative reflects a deliberate shift toward participatory communication, where listening and dialogue replace distance between leaders and the electorate.
Cde Kandishaya, who also serves as President of the Africa Youth Council, emphasised that the tour seeks to give young people and first-time voters a voice in national discourse. He highlighted that the programme is inspired by President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s development philosophy of “leaving no one and no place behind”, reinforcing the Second Republic’s commitment to inclusive, people-centred governance.
The programme was designed with inclusivity in mind, offering free registration, transport, and refreshments to participants. Organisers emphasised openness, unity, and patriotism as guiding values, underscoring a commitment to constructive national discourse anchored in love for the country.
Before departure, Cde Kandishaya explained that the initiative draws inspiration from President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s development philosophy of “leaving no one and no place behind.” The programme embodies the President’s call for a listening government and serves as a practical model for people-centred engagement under the Second Republic.
Designed to take the party directly to the people, rather than expecting citizens to seek out leadership, the initiative allows Zimbabweans to freely express their views on party policies, government performance, and the country’s development trajectory.
The tour also encourages tolerance, constructive debate, and addresses misinformation through direct interaction and transparent responses from leadership.
Notably, a large proportion of participants are first-time voters, highlighting the initiative’s importance in shaping informed political participation and empowering youth voices in national discourse.
In an era where young Zimbabweans increasingly engage with politics through digital platforms, Politics Mubhazi represents a hybrid approach that combines physical engagement with real-time dialogue.
By the end of each journey, the programme is expected to generate accurate grassroots feedback, ensuring that future policy decisions and interventions are grounded in the realities of citizens’ lived experiences—an approach that reflects the governance ethos of the Second Republic.
Within the broader framework of the Second Republic, the initiative stands as a people-centred model of engagement, reinforcing participatory democracy, responsive leadership, and inclusive governance—anchored in the principle of leaving no one and no place behind as Zimbabwe advances its national development agenda.
