Former Energy and Power Development Minister, Fortune Chasi, has urged Zimbabweans to stop blaming Chinese miners for environmental destruction, saying local corruption and weak governance are the real culprits.
Chasi was responding to growing anger over the destruction of natural sites, including Boterekwa in Shurugwi, the Christmas Pass in Mutare, and the Muvaradonha Wilderness in Muzarabani, as Chinese-owned mining companies continue to expand their operations.
Commenting on discussions on X, the former Mazowe South lawmaker said that Chinese investors are often criticised for destructive mining practices, the real issue is Zimbabwean officials who allow such activities for personal gain.
“For years, we have blamed the Chinese for destroying our environment through mining, but the truth is harder to face; the real culprits are locals.
“Local officials sign the licences, local elites pocket the ‘facilitation fees’. Local silence allows rivers to turn into sludge. The Chinese did not corrupt our system; they found it already for sale.”
Chasi argued that the damage to Zimbabwe’s environment is a symptom of deeper governance failures, rather than solely the result of foreign exploitation.
“This isn’t a ‘Chinese problem.’ It is a governance problem. If rules can be bought, someone’s selling.
“Every destroyed riverbed tells a local story, a signature, a bribe, a blind eye. Foreign miners only exploit the vacuum we created.
“Blaming outsiders has become a fashionable, convenient self-deception. Environmental destruction thrives because enforcement is selective and oversight is compromised.
“The reform we need is not about nationality; it is about integrity.
“Until our institutions stop trading ecological integrity for quick cash, nothing will change. The Chinese did not destroy our mountains and rivers. Our signatures did.”
