A request by a member of Zimbabwe’s Junior Parliament for controversial tenderpreneur Wicknell Chivayo to buy vehicles for junior legislators has triggered widespread criticism, with politicians, academics and former participants saying the institution is losing its original purpose.
The junior parliamentarian appealed to Chivayo to provide cars for members of the Junior Parliament, arguing that they currently rely on public transport.
The request comes only days after the same legislator made another proposal in the Junior Parliament calling for every member to receive an iPhone 17 Pro Max.
He argued that the mobile phones currently used by junior parliamentarians have poor-quality cameras that produce blurred images, making it difficult to document issues affecting young people.
The remarks have generated fierce debate on social media, with many questioning the values being promoted through the youth leadership platform.
Former Mt Pleasant MP and constitutional lawyer Fadzayi Mahere described the development as deeply troubling.
“This is an embarrassment that must be condemned by all. Junior Parliament should be a platform where intelligent, promising students are heard on matters of policy and the welfare of the young as well as building leadership capacity,” Mahere wrote on X.
“Instead, they’re reducing it to a cesspit of begging tenderpreneurs for trinkets and giving voice to ZANU PF propaganda. This unfolding tragedy must be stopped in its tracks. What a mess. We need new leaders.”
Political commentator M Matigari argued the incident reflected a deeper cultural problem.
“They are not different in mindset from the MPs who want Land Cruisers from government. Do you see the future challenge?” he wrote.
Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart also criticised the remarks, saying they illustrated the corrosive effects of corruption on Zimbabwean society.
“The spectacle of a junior Parliamentarian begging Chivayo to purchase cars for himself and others is unedifying to say the least.”
Former Junior Parliament member Charline Prazen Chikomo said the institution had once served as an important training ground for future leaders.
She recalled debating education policy before former President Robert Mugabe and then Education Minister Lazarus Dokora, saying the platform had taught constitutionalism, public speaking, advocacy and servant leadership.
“It is painful to see an institution many of us cherish, respect and proudly call our training ground reduced to a platform… for cars and iPhones, becoming a national embarrassment,” she wrote.
Commentator Wilbert Muzaruwetu warned that rewarding young people before they had demonstrated achievement risked cultivating entitlement rather than leadership.
“A nation cannot build skyscrapers on a foundation of entitlement,” he wrote, arguing that Junior Parliament should remain a place for service, responsibility and nation-building.
Academic Dr Chipo Dendere, who also participated in Junior Parliament during her school years, said the institution had changed dramatically.
“When I was in junior parliament it wasn’t this crazy. We had policy debates. We talked about exams and going to university. We debated. We were kids. But kids mirror the society they are growing up in. We wanted to be professionals because that’s what we saw. They want to be mbinga.”
Zimbabwe’s Junior Parliament is intended to provide young people with an opportunity to debate public policy, develop leadership skills and participate in civic education. South Africa runs a similar initiative known as the Youth Parliament.
The controversy comes shortly after President Emmerson Mnangagwa officially opened the 34th Session of Zimbabwe’s Junior Parliament in Harare.
Following the ceremony, Information Ministry Permanent Secretary Nick Mangwana said the Child President of Zimbabwe, Tinashe Mugodhi, had expressed confidence in the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) currency and support for the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Schools Monetary Policy Challenge.
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