Minister Mutsvangwa fired due to his connection with Starlink. WHAT?

We live in a country where a service like Starlink sounds like a God-given gift. It solves so many of our problems you would think we would rush to get that service in the country. Alas, that’s not the case, we’re actually playing hard to get.

We’ve gotten so many contradicting reasons from the govt on why Starlink has not been licensed yet.

In the shadows we were hearing that there were some “national security” concerns and some transit requirements that Starlink could not meet. Simply put, we want Starlink to have more of a physical presence here and require that they work with local internet access providers. Or so we hear.

We knew there could be truth to all that but as many of you said in the comments sections over the months, we could not rule out that some politicians were blocking the deal. Why? They wanted to personally benefit from the deal and would block it until they found a way.

We have seen such shenanigans in the country before and so it was not a wild thought. Looks like you guys may be prophets, we now find that a senior govt minister, or maybe just his son, had some Starlink ‘connections.’

President Emmerson Mnangagwa fired Christopher Mutsvangwa, the former Minister of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Affairs, for various reasons, including his business dealings with Chinese investors and his son’s commercial ventures. Mutsvangwa’s recent outburst against Information Minister Jenfan Muswere, a close ally of the president, regarding changes in state-controlled media board appointments, was the final straw that led to his dismissal, The NewsHawks reported.

I don’t think anyone is particularly sad to see Mutsvangwa go. Dude said and did a lot of contentious stuff. The various reasons that got him fired this time around include his vocal objections to board appointments at ZBC and Zimpapers.

Then there is this,

There were also other issues concerning his business dealings with the Chinese and his son’s commercial undertakings, especially his connection with Starlink. The issue of war veterans who are disgruntled with him was also a major factor.

Starlink connections?

Ah, what Starlink connections are we talking about here? The service is not yet licensed in the country and the govt says they are yet to even apply. So, what connections do the Mutsvangwas have?

Were the Mustvangwas the ones blocking the Starlink deal with ridiculous requirements, all the while promising to smooth it all over, for a fee? I would argue the Mutsvangwas did have the power to influence the licensing of Starlink. To what extent? I don’t know.

Or maybe Mutsvanga’s son was involved in the importation of Starlink kits into the country. Could be but that’s no big deal, ordinary people are doing the same. It wouldn’t lead to a strike on Mutsvangwa’s record.

Unfortunately, this feels like one of those issues that we will never truly figure out. They are not about to lay it all out in the open. However, if we saw Starlink licensed in the near future that could mean Mutsvangwa indeed was involved in blocking the service.

At this point, these are all just allegations. We don’t know for certain that Mutsvangwa did anything wrong. It could be infighting within the party that’s turned ugly. In Zimbabwe, you can never know.

As you were

I know none of this would surprise you guys. Look, we didn’t even get to Mustavngwa’s dealings with the Chinese. The Chinese are our friends in this country and so one wonders why a minister’s dealings with them would lead to his ouster.

We have heard the stories, the allegations that these ministers solicit bribes and other payments from the Chinese. If the Chinese did not pay those bribes they would not get to operate in the country.

If they pay, they get preferential treatment, for example, getting the Environmental Management Agency off their backs like the Chinese miners have been getting.

Ah, Zimbabwe, what a crazy little country.

Also read:

• Zimbabwe, South Africa both threaten Starlink importers and confiscate kits
• Botswana latest Southern African country to block Starlink, situation not as bad as Zim and SA’s
• Starlink coming to Zimbabwe through Dandemutande partnership? Is the wait over folks?